Some 450 new homes are slated to be built, along with a more than 60-acre business park, in southwest Rio Rancho as part of an ambitious plan tied to the construction of a new elementary school.
Members of the Rio Rancho Public Schools Board of Education have given their approval to the construction of the new $24 million school to be built off Westside Boulevard on currently vacant land. The Joe Harris Elementary School has long been in the planning stage, but has been delayed several times due to funding issues. If all goes according to plan, work on the new school, which will be built for a capacity of 850 students, will begin next January with a June 2020 completion date. The building of the school will bring with it the development of a large swath of residential construction, including the Cabezon neighborhood to the east of the school off of Unser Boulevard NW. Homes in that neighborhood, according to sources, could upon completion list for anywhere from $200,000 to $500,000. The master plan, spearheaded by a unique coalition made up of the City of Rio Rancho and the Rio Rancho Public Schools, along with local developer Pierre Amestoy and the Southern Sandoval County Flood Control Authority, also calls for the creation of a business park, as well as outdoor green space and walking trails. Money for the project is coming from a number of sources, including $11 million in private investment, $4.7 million from the Southern Sandoval County Flood Control Authority, and $3 million in Rio Rancho gross receipts tax revenue. By Garry Boulard
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In what might be regarded as a rare display of bi-partisan unity, members of the U.S. Senate, on a 92 to 6 vote, have approved a bill designed to fund a wide variety of transportation infrastructure projects.
The transportation funding is part of a package of four separate fiscal year 2019 spending measures totaling more than $154 billion. The transportation part will see the funding for everything from transit capital grants to highway maintenance funding and airport infrastructure grants. As approved, the bill adds $3.3 billion for highway and bridge upkeep and construction projects; and $300 million for drinking water and wastewater treatment infrastructure revolving funds. The money for airport infrastructure projects is set at $3.3 billion, which will go to the ongoing federal Airport Improvement Program run by the Federal Aviation Administration. That’s an increase of $750 million over last year’s funding. The bill does not go along with the Trump Administration’s idea to do away with the discretionary grants that used to go by the name of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grants. Instead, it keeps intact TIGER’s replacement, the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development Transportation grants program, which awards funding to programs based on such factors as safety, economic competitiveness, and environmental protection. The Senate Bill now has to be reconciled with House legislation before the official beginning of the fiscal year on October 1. By Garry Boulard ![]() As part of a larger effort to build what is being called the Grove on Mainstreet in downtown Parker, Colorado, plans have been announced for the construction of a 51-room Lazlo Hotel. The four-story structure will house 14,000 square feet of retail space, as well as a sports bar, steak and seafood restaurant, and tap room. Project owner of the Lazlo Hotel is the capital markets and real estate investment group Jones Lang Lasalle Inc., which has offices in Denver. JJL plans to spend nearly $16 million to build a hotel that will be designed to cater to upscale travelers and guests. The hotel will go up in the Grove on Mainstreet district, a section of Parker’s downtown that was officially unveiled late last year and is expected to see the opening of retail and restaurant options adjacent to a public gathering space and outdoor plaza with a fire-pit. The building of the Lazlo Hotel will be a part of the first-phase development and construction of the Grove on Mainstreet. City officials say the hotel and multi-phase district is a sign of the explosive growth of Parker, located some 25 miles southeast of Denver, which has seen it population more than double from 24,500 in 2000 to just over 51,000 today. By Garry Boulard A pipeline that would carry water from Lake Nighthorse in Durango, Colorado to Farmington, New Mexico may come with a big price tag.
A consultant for the Los Angeles-based AECOM has told members of the San Juan Water Commission that such a pipeline, running about 50 miles in length, would cost anywhere from $83 million to $173 million to construct. The commission has for several years been contemplating the benefits of a Lake Nighthorse pipeline, noting that the water from the 120,000-acre foot reservoir could be used in emergency situations and to ease drought conditions. Rick Cox, a senior engineering with AECOM, which provides design, consulting, and management services to cities across the globe, said the estimate to build what would be a high density polyethylene pipe did not factor in the cost of acquiring rights of way. This spring, a pipeline connecting Lake Nighthorse to Lake Durango, just under five miles in length, was completed at a cost of $5.3 million. Lake Nighthorse, named in honor of former Colorado Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, was built and is managed by the Bureau of Reclamation. By Garry Boulard After declines due to the Great Recession, the market for construction equipment has been on the upswing for most of this year, with forecasts for continued gains in 2019.
According to the market and opinion research site Statista.com, some 167,000 construction equipment units, which are composed of such essentials as bulldozers, excavators, and scrapers, among dozens of other items, are expected to be sold in North America by the end of this year. That number is up from 160,000 at the end of 2017. Despite the improvement over Great Recession losses, the North American construction equipment market has overall dropped from a high of 186,000 units in 2016. Those numbers are similar to the units sold in China, which dropped from 209,000 in 2014 to 147,000 last year. The Chinese market is now on track for a total this year of 169,000 units, pushing it marginally ahead of units sold in North America for the first time since 2014. The European market, meanwhile, has increased from 124,000 units in 2014 to around 160,000 units today. Only in the Indian market has there been a consistent increase in units sold, from 38,000 in 2015 to 54,000 last year and a projected 63,000 units in 2019. According to the Hamburg, Germany-based Statista: “China, North America, and Europe are expected to be the largest markets for construction equipment for years to come.” The site adds that while the European market will remain flat and the Chinese market is facing a variety of challenges, the North American market “is expected to continue its buoyancy.” By Garry Boulard ![]() After additional traffic impact information has been submitted, a plan to build a controversial high-rise in an upscale section of Phoenix may be finally voted on by members of the city’s Planning Commission in September. The project, as proposed by the Phoenix-based DMB Development, would see the construction of a modern mixed-use structure at the site of the current La Maison Interiors at 15450 N. Scottsdale Road. A document submitted by DMB to the City of Phoenix contends that “given the growth and intensification of uses in the immediate area, the property is no longer conducive to a single-story retail building fronting a major arterial road.” The original proposal for that 2.2-acre site called for either a 196-foot tall structure or a building 120 feet in height. Members of the Paradise Valley Village Planning Committee recently voted in favor of the smaller structure, which would house around 100 hotel rooms and condominium units on the project’s upper floors, with retail space on the ground level. That vote came after residents of the Kierland neighborhood, organized as the Kierland Community Alliance, expressed opposition to the 196-foot tall version of the project. Although more than 700 Kierland residents have signaled their opposition to the taller project in a petition, the area has seen other multi-story apartment construction in recent years. The Kierland neighborhood, which rests in both Phoenix and next-door Scottsdale, is made up of upscale residential homes going for as much as $500,000 to $650,000. By Garry Boulard An Albuquerque company that provides cloud storage, security, and networking services to clients across the country, is making plans to renovate a 40,000 square foot building for its new headquarters.
Founded in 1994, Advanced Network Management was listed last year by the publication Inc. as one of its 5,000 fastest-growing companies. In 2016, it was named as a Flying 40 fastest-growing company by the Albuquerque Journal with revenues of more than $10 million. The company currently operates out of a 12,000 square-foot facility space at 2288 Columbine Avenue. The new site, located about 4 miles to the south, near Osuna Road NE, in a neighborhood of mostly newer one-story retail and industrial facilities, will allow the company, said chief executive officer Raminder Mann in a statement to “deliver on our commitment to our New Mexico community of hiring local talent and increasing investment in training and workforce development.” The company will spend nearly $6 million to purchase the structure itself, on top of up to $800,000 to renovate the new location. To help fund the project, Advanced Network Management is receiving $750,000 in Local Economic Development Act funds through the New Mexico Economic Development Department, with $250,000 coming from the City of Albuquerque. That $250,000 is expected to be approved by members of the Albuquerque City Council later this month. Local Economic Development Act funds are geared, in part, for companies that are planning to expand in New Mexico. In moving to a new location, Advanced Network Management is expected to hire 40 more people in the coming months. By Garry Boulard Legislation that could fund the construction of miles and miles of broadband infrastructure in rural areas across the country is expected to be approved by members of Congress either later this month or in September.
The massive 2018 Farm Bill will in effect extend the Agricultural Act of 2014, which is set to expire on September 30. The $867 billion legislation will fund a variety of agricultural and economic development programs through loans and grants, including assistance for rural micro-entrepreneurs or micro enterprises. Both the House and the Senate have approved their own versions of the legislation, with the American Planning Association recently announcing its preference for the Senate Bill, saying that it would “expand access to healthy food, improve rural economics and protect vital agricultural land and environmental resources.” A conference committee is now tasked with reconciling the differences between the two bills. By Garry Boulard ![]() The sprawling, tree-lined campus of a school in southwest Denver that was opened more than a century ago may soon be redeveloped for residential, retail, and restaurant purposes. Colorado Height University, at 3001 South Federal Boulevard, announced two years ago that it was closing its doors in 2017 due to accreditation issues. In the wake of that closure, residents expressed concern about the future of the campus, the visual center point of which is a handsome six-story Romanesque structure that served as the school’s main administration building. The six-story red stone building was designed by well-known Colorado architect Frank Edbrooke in 1891 and is one of several iconic structures on a campus that was originally the home to the Loretto Heights Academy. Now the 74-acre campus has been sold for $16.5 million to the Glendale, Colorado-based Westside Investment Partners, after a deal earlier this summer to sell the property fell through. Officials with Westside Investment say their goal for the site, which includes a library, performing arts center, and series of classroom buildings, is to keep the historic buildings intact. But the company has also said that it wants to redevelop other parts of the campus for retail and restaurant space. The redevelopment may also include the construction of some affordable housing space. Exact plans for the site have not yet been revealed, but are expected to be announced shortly. Originally founded by the Sisters of Loretto, who opened a Catholic high school for girls, the larger site contains a 1-acre cemetery with the graves of some 62 nuns who had served the school for decades as teachers and administrators. The new owners have promised to leave the cemetery protected and undisturbed. By Garry Boulard In an effort to find a solution to the growing challenge of plastic waste, the City of Phoenix is thinking about building a plant that would provide new manufactured uses for a variety of discarded plastic goods.
The moves comes in the wake of a decision announced earlier this year by the government of China declining to accept U.S. plastic disposables due to pollution concerns. A portion of the waste sent to China came from Phoenix, which is worried that its current landfill capacity for such materials may meet its limit in the next decade or so. If Phoenix does build a plastic waste remanufacturing plant, it will be the first of its kind in the nation. The plant could prove particularly useful, say Phoenix officials, not only because it will pick up the slack left by the China’s decision to no longer accept such materials, but also because currently only around 10 percent of discarded plastics are recycled in the city. A decision regarding when a plastics remanufacturing facility will be built in Phoenix is expected to be announced later this year. By Garry Boulard |
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