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March 5, 2013

News for contractors and the construction industry

Top Story

8 teams to bid on Fla.'s $2.1B public-private partnership project

Eight groups have expressed interest in Florida's $2.1 billion makeover of 21 miles of Interstate 4, according to the state Department of Transportation. The state will shoulder about half of the project's cost; the winning group will cover the rest and maintain and operate the road for 35 years. FDOT plans to select a winning team before the end of the year and begin work in 2015. "This project is attracting the 'who's who' as it relates to private-public partnership," said Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Ananth Prasad. American City Business Journals/Orlando, Fla. (3/4), Central Florida News 13 (Orlando, Fla.) (3/4), WFTV-TV (Orlando, Fla.) (3/4)

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Infrastructure & Project Focus

Third condo tower added to Miami's $1.05B Brickell CityCentre
A $1.05 billion mixed-use project in Miami has plans to add a third condominium tower containing 350 units. The Brickell CityCentre project, with two condo towers, wants to reach a total of 1,175 residential units with its third tower. The project will also include offices, retail buildings, hotel suites and a direct Metromover connection when completed. American City Business Journals/South Florida (3/4)

Mass. DOT selects developer for $360M mixed-use project
Developers for a $360 million mixed-use project with multiple buildings in Boston have been chosen by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Steve Samuels and Weiner Ventures say the project will offer hotel, residential and retail space. The Boston Globe (tiered subscription model) (3/4)

Work starts on $172M HarborCenter project in Buffalo, N.Y.
Construction has started on the $172.2 million HarborCenter mixed-use development in Buffalo, N.Y., according to the Buffalo Sabres hockey team, the project's developer. A pair of hockey rinks and a 200-room hotel will be built. An opening date for the hockey rinks is scheduled for September 2014, while the hotel is slated for a May 2015 opening. American City Business Journals/Buffalo, N.Y./Morning Roundup blog (3/4)

Work begins on first phase of NYC residential development project
Construction has begun on the first phase of the Hunter's Point South project, a massive residential development in the Long Island City area of New York City. The first phase will feature two high-rise residential buildings designed to withstand surges stronger than Superstorm Sandy's, along with a 1,100-seat school and a five-acre waterfront park. The project is expected to have a total of 5,000 residential units and 11 acres of waterfront parkland when it reaches completion. The Epoch Times (3/4)

Ore. Senate narrowly passes $450M funding for $3.4B Columbia River Crossing
The Oregonian (Portland) (3/4)

Economic Update

Survey of U.S. economists reveals worry over Fed stimulus

Although a majority of economists surveyed believe the Federal Reserve's monetary stimulus has been effective, about two-thirds say the program should be wound down and terminated this year, well ahead of what many investors are hoping for. The survey of 196 members of the National Association for Business Economics also found that 44% believed Fed policy is providing too much stimulus, up from 26% in September. Los Angeles Times (tiered subscription model)/Money & Co. blog (3/4)

Innovation & Green Building

Use of mobile construction apps on the rise, says research firm
Mobile applications are rapidly becoming a common tool for construction projects as smartphone downloads are expected to reach 56 billion in 2013, according to ABI Research. This piece looks at some of the offerings across the Android, Apple and Windows platforms. Constructech (free registration) (3/4)

Survey: Most construction firms expect to build green by 2015
Construction firms across the world expect 60% of their projects to be environmentally friendly by 2015, according to the SmartMarket Report of McGraw-Hill Construction. About 51% of the respondents expect most of their work to be green in 2015, up from 28% who reported the same in 2013 and up from 13% in 2008. The reason driving green building shifted from "doing the right thing" in 2008 to client and market demand in 2012, the report stated. Environmental Leader (3/4)

Policy Watch

Obama moves to take climate-change, energy policy from Congress
President Barack Obama has nominated two people to his Cabinet, following through on his warning that he will use executive power to set climate-change and energy policy if Congress doesn't act. He nominated Gina McCarthy, a former regulator and expert on air-quality law, to head the Environmental Protection Agency, and physicist Ernest Moniz, who advocates phasing out coal, to run the Department of Energy. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (3/4), NBC News/NBC Politics blog (3/4), Politico (Washington, D.C.) (3/4), Oil & Gas Journal (3/4)

Rep. Upton remains concerned about Keystone XL approval prospects
TransCanada's Keystone XL pipeline could still fail to secure approval from the U.S. unless Congress takes action, said Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Last week, a draft State Department report found that the project would have only a minimal impact on the environment. "We fear the delays have allowed the opposition to grow so out-of-control that congressional action is still necessary to get the pipeline built," Upton said. United Press International (3/4)

Association News

National construction charity group begins renovations to Palm Springs’ Angel View
Construction charity organization AGC Charities, Inc., began work this week on renovations to the main facility of a Palm Springs area group that supports children and adults with disabilities as part of its annual Operation Opening Doors event. Dozens of contractors are donating time, expertise and money to make a series of improvements to the headquarters of Angel View. "We are using our skills to make life a little easier and a lot more accessible for people with disabilities," said Jim Clemens, chairman of Ocean City, N.J.-based Clemens Construction Co. and the chairman of AGC Charities. "Our members are committed to building a better quality of life for the Coachella Valley’s disabled community." Read more.

2013 National Work Zone Awareness Survey
AGC annually participates in National Work Zone Awareness Week to highlight the danger to construction workers of motorists not obeying speed limits or not staying alert in highway work zones. This year's National Work Zone Awareness Week will take place April 15-19 with the theme "Work Zone Safety: We’re All In This Together." To get a better handle on the impact of vehicle crashes at AGC member work sites, we have prepared this survey and will release the results as part of the week’s events. Please take a few minutes to complete the survey before Monday, March 25. We appreciate your input.

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