![]() A nearly 47,000 square industrial building currently housing a steel manufacturing company is up for sale in Greeley, Colorado. What is popularly known as the Brewer Steel Company building was built in 1995 and is located one a 4.4-acre site at 2985 1st Avenue on the eastern side of Greeley. The Brewer company ceased operations at the site several years ago and has since been replaced by EMIT Technologies Incorporated. A one-story structure, the building is also located in a defined Opportunity Zone, and features a ceiling height of 40 feet and a clear height of 38 feet. Listed with Waypoint Real Estate of Fort Collins, the building is in a part of the city populated with other modern warehouses and garages. Emit Technologies, specializing in steel products, catalytic converters, engine control systems, and automotive accessories, among other products, has a second facility located in Sheridan, Wyoming. By Garry Boulard
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![]() Construction could begin later this year on what is being called an “opportunity center” that will be a part of the larger Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque. Located at 2401 12th Street NW, the nonprofit cultural center is run by New Mexico’s 19 Indian Pueblos. Centerpiece of the 80-acre site is a 10,000 square foot museum showcasing both contemporary as well as historic Pueblo art and artifacts. Recent development at the site has seen the building of structures featuring classroom meeting space and a restaurant, for a combined 21,000 square feet. The proposed opportunity center, which could cost at least $10 million to build, will house classroom space, collaborative workspace, and a culinary incubator. In an interview with the Albuquerque Journal, Mike Canfield, chief executive officer of the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, said the opportunity center would be focused on skills training and financial literacy. The collaborative work space will feature equipment and tools for making pottery and jewelry, while the classroom space will house business classes, among other things. Funding for the project, which currently has no precise construction schedule, is expected to come from a variety of sources. By Garry Boulard ![]() Construction skills training appears to be making a comeback nationally, according to a new study. The publication Hechinger Report, which regularly explores educational trends across the country, notes that “education for the skilled trades appears to be returning to fashion.” The study says that a handful of schools in the last year have seen an average increase of 20% or more in the number of students enrolling in such programs. Schools in Florida, Georgia, and Texas have all experienced significant student growth. Meanwhile, the Lake Area Technical College in Watertown, South Dakota, recorded an 8.1% registration increase. Trades education classes at Georgia Piedmont Technical College in Clarkston, Georgia, at the same time, were up by 13% this fall over the fall of 2020. These numbers, notes the report, are taking place during a time when the “proportion of high school students who are considering a four-year education has plummeted from 71% to 48% since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.” The report additionally notes that such enrollment jumps have taken place against a backdrop of “labor shortages in fields such as construction, transportation and logistics, along with rising pay for those kinds of jobs and the lower debt and the shorter timetables needed to train for them.” Responding to these trends, the Rocky Mountain Mechanical Contractors Association late last year announced the formation of a school called the Western States College of Construction and designed to focus entirely on trade skills learning. The Hechinger Report additionally references a study published by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce noting that while those with bachelor’s degrees still earn more money, the number of jobs with a median pay of around $55,000 has in recent years been rising in about half of the states. By Garry Boulard ![]() A move to redevelop the well-known Sakura Square in downtown Denver is underway. The site belongs to the long-standing Tri-State Denver Buddhist Temple, which has been in operation for more than a century. Located at the intersection of 19th Street and Larimer Street, the square currently includes nearly two dozen apartment units, as well as restaurant and retail space. Officials with the company that owns the site have indicated that for the expansion to become reality the building housing the temple itself will most likely have to be demolished. That building was completed in 1949, and because of its age has some structural and mechanical system issues. In a public statement, the company Sakura Square LLC said it wanted to “reposition Sakura Square and the Temple for current and future generations.” That means that once the current temple is leveled, work can begin on building both a new temple as well as community center. The redeveloped square will additionally see the creation of more residential and retail space. Sakura Square was designed by well-known architect Bertram Bruton and includes a garden with a monument dedicated to Minoru Yasui, a lawyer who challenged the internment of Japanese-Americans in World War II and was himself sent to a relocation center in Idaho. Last year the square was recognized by the group Historic Denver as one of the city’s most treasured historic sites. By Garry Boulard ![]() An online auction of more than 400 land parcels and properties owned by the Archdiocese of Santa Fe in some fifteen New Mexico counties is scheduled to begin on January 31. The one-week auction will be conducted by SVN Auction Services of Boynton Beach, Florida, and will include any number of office, residential, and commercial buildings. What is officially called the Phase Two auction, as approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Mexico, follows a September auction offering 140 Archdiocese-owned parcels in Bernalillo, Sandoval and Valencia counties. That auction generated around $1.4 million. The Archdiocese has been in the process of both auctioning off and selling property it owns after declaring bankruptcy as a result of a series of lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by members of the Catholic clergy. To date, there have been around 300 settlements stemming from sexual abuse claims. In an Archdiocese blog published last month, Archbishop John Webster acknowledged that the Chapter 11 process has been lengthy. “We are making progress, albeit slow progress,” wrote Webster, adding his hope that the process will “bring healing to the victims of sexual abuse, to their families, our parishes and this local Church.” By Garry Boulard ![]() As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to take up the issue of whether vaccine mandates in the workplace are legal, a Louisiana federal judge has issued a ruling specifically applying to workers for the federal Head Start program. Judge Terry Doughty of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana has issued a preliminary injunction against the federal mandate as earlier instituted by President Biden. Specifically addressing the mandate as it impacts the pre-K Head Start education program, Doughty declared that the executive branch does not have the power to impose a vaccine mandate without the express approval of Congress. The mandate has proven particularly controversial within the construction industry. The Associated General Contractors of America in December filed a suit in federal court claiming that the mandate was economically burdensome to builders. While noting that the AGC supports vaccines in general, Stephen Sandherr, chief executive of the group, said a mandate “will only drive vaccine-hesitate workers” to seek work elsewhere. Sandherr also said that the mandate would have the effect of making federal construction projects “slower, harder, and more expensive.” According to the Center for Construction Research and Training, while around 80% of workers in other occupations have been vaccinated, only a little over 50% of all construction workers were in that category as of this fall. Biden announced in late September that the federal government was mandating vaccinations for all federal employees, as well as employees with companies doing work for the government. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on the mandate this week. By Garry Boulard ![]() El Paso may see new housing, green infrastructure, and street projects depending upon the fate of a new bond issue that will likely be presented to voters in November. Members of the El Paso City Council have voted to instruct City of El Paso staff to put together a bond package that will list the various projects, with the idea of launching a series of public input meetings to discuss which projects are most needed. Those meetings will be held this coming spring and early summer. An official bond proposal, including the specific projects to be funded, will then most likely be voted on by the council in August, three months before the election. According to sources, the potential list may also include solar energy projects, as well as eco- tourism initiatives. While an exact price tag for the bond has not yet been revealed, recent history indicates a generally positive response to such proposals on the part of El Paso voters. In 2012, the massive $473 million Quality of Life bond program, providing funds for any number of community center, library, and park improvements, was approved by 72% of voters. Similarly, in 2019 voters by a 59% to 41% margin gave the green light to the $413 million Public Safety Bond, design to support police and fire department facility projects, among other things. By Garry Boulard ![]() A drive-in movie theater in Pueblo first opened in 1951 when John Wayne was the country’s number one money-making star and the epic historical drama Quo Vadis was the number one movie, is being listed for sale. Located at 2620 Santa Fe Avenue, the Mesa Drive-In has been a local and regional entertainment mainstay and in almost continuous operation, except for the covid year of 2020, for more than six decades. Sitting on a 16-acre site, the property includes three large screens and two separate structures: a concession stand and projection building, both of which underwent renovation in 1994. That property is large enough to hold up to 1,000 vehicles. Listed with the Pueblo-based Cordova Investments, the asking price for the Mesa Drive-In is $860,000. Since 1951, the Mesa Drive-In’s ownership has changed hands only once: in 1993, when it was purchased by Chuck and Marianne James, who also owned the Skyline Theater in Canon City. Drive-in movie theaters reached their peak nationally in the late 1950s, with more than 4,000 across the country. There are today just a little over 350 drive-in movie theaters nationally, with less than ten such venues still up and running in the Centennial State. By Garry Boulard ![]() The U.S. Senate is once again reviewing legislation earlier proposed by President Biden that would, if passed, provide up to $555 billion for clean energy and climate change projects nationally. The Build Back Better Act was originally proposed last spring and underwent a series of revisions to win Congressional approval. The sticking point to the plan has always been its price tag, which originally stood at $6 trillion, but was eventually reduced to around $2 trillion. On a close 220 to 213 vote, the legislation won approval in the House in late November, only to stall in the Senate where it has continued to lack majority support. Seen as a bill that would prove a counterpart to Biden’s successful infrastructure act, the Build Better Act from the start has been largely designed to deal with an array of social issues and includes $400 billion in funding for childcare and preschool programs, as well as $150 billion for home care. In December, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer announced plans to schedule a vote for the overall legislation later this month, although he remains uncertain of the outcome. Speaking to reporters, Schumer said he wanted a new vote taken on the measure so that members will have the “opportunity to make their position known on the Senate floor, not just on television.” Congressional observers have said that the legislation may finally win passage with a yet even smaller price tag, or that aspects of the big bill may be broken down into smaller proposals. Noting that the original legislation summoned up images of Franklin D. Roosevelt and his sweeping New Deal economic reform legislation, the Financial Times recently predicted that if the Build Back Better bill survives at all, “its scope will be far narrower than the original FDR-like idea.” By Garry Boulard ![]() A two-story motel in Raton, New Mexico is being listed for sale for $2.4 million. Built in 1977, the motel is branded as a Travelodge by Wyndham and is in a defined Opportunity Zone at 1600 Cedar Street. With exactly 100 rooms, the motel measures 28,000 square feet and includes an outdoor swimming pool and dining space. Listed by the Hazen Hospitality Group of Glenwood Springs, Colorado, the motel sits on a 2.3-acre site and is situated in a mostly residential area just off Interstate 25. Travelodge by Wyndham motels are a spin-off of the original Travel Lodge budget chain launched in southern California in the 1940s. The chain was for decades known for its mascot Sleepy Bear, which appeared on the company’s signs and advertising beginning in the mid-1950s. By Garry Boulard |
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