In an effort to advance the maintenance and upgrading of senior housing facilities, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is contemplating using private financing to fund such projects. Tom Davis, director of HUD’s office of recapitalization, has told the Wall Street Journal that bringing in money from the private sector might help the agency “avoid the kind of capital backlog problem that other parts of the affordable housing portfolio have.” There are currently more than 2,900 properties owned and managed by HUD that are geared for seniors. Those properties, some of which were built in the 1960s, are in various states of condition, with almost all needing some form of repair. As the country’s population ages, the need for senior public housing continues to grow. Last year, Congress passed legislation providing up to $100 million in funding for the construction of new senior housing. But HUD officials say maintaining current senior housing space, which often entails heating and cooling system upgrades, as well as roof repairs, is just as pressing as the need to build new space. HUD Secretary Ben Carson has described keeping those properties up to date as one of the agency’s top priorities for the next several years. If HUD ultimately allows for the use of private funding to be used in senior housing upgrades, it will be a first in the department’s nearly 55-year history. It is not known when the department will make a final determination on the matter. By Garry Boulard
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Upgrade work on three public libraries in El Paso is still in the planning stage, the last of the big projects funded by the Quality of Life Bonds passed by voters nearly seven years ago. That $473 million bond has been spent on a variety of park, street, and museum projects, as well as the $1.6 million renovation of the Richard Burges Library at 9600 Dyer Street, which saw the addition of new community space and study rooms. The Sergio Troncoso Library at 9321 Alameda Avenue has also received some $450,000 in general facility upgrades as a result of the bond. Now slated for work is the $620,000 renovation and upgrading of the Dorris Van Doren Regional Library at 551 E. Redd Road, which is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2020. The design phase for the $350,000 upgrading of the Armijo Branch Library at 620 E. 7th Avenue is set to launch this fall, with actual construction work starting in late 2020. And, finally, one of the most talked-about bond library projects will see design work starting in the fall of 2022 on El Paso’s main downtown library, located at 501 N. Oregon. That limestone building, with a distinct modernist design, was opened in the fall of 1954. Public input meetings have already been held, with perhaps more in the offing, discussing the exact structural changes to a building that serves an estimated 200,000 patrons yearly. Once the design phase of the main library project is completed, actual construction is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2023, with a completion date one year after that. By Garry Boulard A plan calling for the creation of a new skate park in the southwestern Arizona town of Bouse is currently being reviewed by state officials and expected to be approved later this year. Talked about for the last two years, the park will likely be constructed on roughly 56 acres off Joshua Road. That mostly vacant site is on the south side of Bouse, directly across the road from the Bouse Elementary School. If built, the park would be integrated into the much larger Arizona Peace Trail, which connects Bullhead City to Yuma through an oblong-shaped trail loop designed for off-highway vehicle use. The Arizona State Parks Board has now given its approval to purchasing the planned site for the skate park, which some decades ago was the home to a small cotton gin. Preliminary plans for the park have also been submitted to the Arizona State Legislature’s capital review committee. Once that committee gives its approval, public input meetings are expected to be held regarding the final design of the park. According to the Santa Monica, California-based Skate Park Association, there are more than 3,200 skate parks currently in the U.S., and just over eighty in Arizona. Construction costs for building such space can range anywhere from $100,000 to more than a $1 million depending upon the site preparation, design details, and infrastructure of each park. By Garry Boulard american campus communities expected to spearhead additional student housing growth, says report8/12/2019 The largest student housing development company in the nation is expected to see a double-digit increase in its properties in the next several years. That prospect, according to a new report issued by the New York-based Argus Research, is largely fueled by estimates that the country’s college enrollment will increase by at least 15 percent between now and 2021. Based in Austin, American Campus Communities already has just under 170 student housing properties up and running, comprising more than 109,000 beds. The Argus Research report, American Campus: At the Head of the Class, predicts that the company will see work completed on some seven new projects in the next two years with a price tag value of $877 million. One of the reasons for American Campus’ dominant position in the market has been its aggressive study of student housing market needs in individual college towns. Its housing, according to the Argus Research study, is “considered more modern and comfortable than older college dormitories and privately-owned apartments.” Amenities at typical American Campus projects, continues the report, include “gyms and spacious rooms.” The company has additionally enhanced its reputation for forward-thinking with the announcement that it will build dormitories housing up to 6,200 new beds for interns at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. That $615 million project is expected to be built in phases between 2020 and 2023. Although the horizon currently appears cloudless for American Campus, the Argus Research report cautions that “declines in student enrollment, or the construction of competing off-campus developments, could hurt the company’s occupancy rates.” A new report on the financial site Motley Fool points out that while American Campus’ current 109,000-bed total seems like a lot, “It’s important to realize that this covers about 0.6 percent of the American college student population.” While this means that any of American Campus’ competitors can be expected to take on more and larger student housing projects in the near future, the company itself, says Motley Fool, may end up “multiplying its market share several times over in the next decade or two.” By Garry Boulard While it is still in the preliminary stage, a master plan is currently being developed for the Steamboat Springs Airport that could see the construction of several new facilities at the site, including one or two new hangars. The plan has already been the subject of several public input meetings and reviewed by an advisory board to the airport. At issue is determining the future growth of the airport, which is located at 3499 Airport Circle, roughly three miles to the northwest of the Steamboat Spring’s town square. Although the airport already has nearly fifty hangars, the need for more such structures has always been great. It is also thought that private operators flying in and out of the airport may fund the construction of such structures for their own use. The new fueling stations would be in the form of self-serve operations designed specifically for smaller planes. The plan, which is being put together by Dowl, a civil engineering consulting firm with offices in Denver, also includes the extension of the airport’s runway to 5,000 feet from its current 4,400 feet. A final version of the plan is expected to be submitted to the Steamboat Springs City Council either later this year or in early 2020. By Garry Boulard Plans have been announced for the construction of a new hotel and much-needed conference space in Los Alamos. The project, to be developed by the Albuquerque-based TNJLA, Incorporated, would see the construction of 86 new rooms, as well as a conference center able to accommodate up to 300 people. The development will be branded as a Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. TNJLA is currently trying to secure property belonging to Los Alamos County for the project, in compliance with Local Economic Development Act guidelines. The 3-acre site in question is located just off what is called the 20th Street Extension. Members of the Los Alamos County Council are now in the process of trying to decide whether to approve an ordinance that will allow for the county to turn the land over to TNJLA. A part of that process will also see the company entering into a Project Participation Agreement with the county. The ordinance question could be decided by council members in late August. TNJLA has spearheaded the development of similar hotel projects in Albuquerque, Carlsbad, and Hobbs, among other locations. By Garry Boulard new bureau of indian education facility in arizona seen as template for future school construction8/9/2019 The recent completion of a new school in Laveen, Arizona, designed to serve more than five hundred K-8 students on the Gila River Indian Reservation, is being seen as a precursor to future new schools run by the federal Bureau of Indian Education. The Gila Crossing Community School, located at 4665 W. Pecos Road, is actually made up of a series of interlocking structures housing classrooms, a library, gymnasium, offices, and dining space. Construction of the school is part of a larger effort to replace outdated BIE facilities across the country. According to reports, many of those schools, which were built in the late 19th century, suffer from asbestos contamination, and both electrical and plumbing system issues. Currently the BIE has up and running more than 180 elementary and secondary schools located on 63 reservations nationally. The total enrollment today at those facilities is in excess of 47,000 students. In testimony before the Senate’s Committee on Indian Affairs last year, Tony Dearman, BIE director, noted the aged condition of many of the BIE schools, and said the agency was doing what it could with $129 million in infrastructure funding to “address the current backlog in school construction and maintenance.” Dearman additionally estimated that it would probably cost nearly $300 million to replace all of the BIE schools that are not up to current standards. The BIE is asking for a 2020 fiscal year budget of $32.3 million that will allow it to build some of those new facilities, as well as maintain existing older schools. The BIE has additionally determined that there are currently a minimum of sixty schools that need to be replaced due to their age and condition. By Garry Boulard Denver is one of two cities in line to be the home to a new museum centered on the history and celebration of the National Medal of Honor. That medal is the nation’s highest and most prestigious honor bestowed upon soldiers in combat situations. The project would be undertaken by the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation, which expects to make an announcement in early October regarding where the museum will be located. If the foundation selects Denver, the museum, which will also include an education center, will almost certainly go up at the busy corner of Lincoln Street and East Colfax Avenue, across the street from the Colorado State Capitol. The new facility is expected to cost at least $150 million to build, with funding coming from a combination of private donations, as well as both the State of Colorado and the City of Denver. It is thought that it could take up to four and a half years to complete the project. Part of the site that foundation officials have been looking at includes a 20,000 square foot parcel owned by the Regional Transportation District. That property would be used as a gateway park to the museum itself. The other city being considered for the museum is Arlington, Texas. City officials there have touted a site running adjacent to the Globe Life Field ballpark, currently under construction, as a likely spot for the facility. Former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama are serving as honorary directors of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation. More than 3,500 Medals of Honor have been awarded, going back to the beginning of the Civil War, with the medal itself usually awarded by the President. By Garry Boulard An unprecedented move to halt the continuing construction of the City of Phoenix’s massive light rail network will be decided in a special election set for August 27. City officials have said that they want to build some six new extensions to the Valley Metro Light Rail system in the next two decades. In response, Proposition 105 is calling for an amendment to the city’s charter that will officially curtail any new light rail extension initiatives. Instead, according to the supporters of that proposition, the money for such projects would be diverted to a host of other transportation infrastructure projects across Phoenix. That money comes a 0.7 percent transportation sales tax, revenues of which are specifically dedicated to light rail development and construction. Former Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton, who spearheaded the development of the city’s light rail infrastructure, has come out against Proposition 105, contending that it will not only stop ongoing light rail expansion, but is instead a “full attack on any and all future rail projects.” Writing in the Arizona Republic, Stanton additionally noted that if the proposition wins, “billions in federal money could be taken from Phoenix and given to other cities like Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, or Salt Lake City, which have active rail projects.” A group called the Arizona Free Enterprise Club is promoting Proposition 105, saying that continued light rail expansion is costing the city too much. Aimee Yenes, vice president of that club, noted in a study released by the group that the economic benefits touted regarding continued light rail expansion have failed to include the negative impact such expansion has had in “displacing or shuttering small businesses along the construction of the line.” Complicating the battle for both sides is the wording of the August 27 ballot: “a Yes vote will require the city to end new light rail extension work; a No vote will allow the city to pursue continued expansion projects.” By Garry Boulard The addition of 164,000 new jobs in July is one of the factors contributing to the lowest unemployment rate seen since Dwight Eisenhower was elected president in 1952. So says Patrick Pizzella, acting Secretary of Labor, in response to the latest statistics issued by the department showing that the overall unemployment rate is now at 3.7 percent. Noting that more than 5.7 million new jobs have been created since early 2017, Pizzella in a statement said, “Strong private-sector employment gains were led by the education and health services, professional and business services, and financial services industries.” Pizzella also noted that the nation’s unemployment level has been at or below the 4 percent mark since early 2018. Numbers compiled by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a total of 7.3 million job openings nationally during the month of June. While job opening opportunities were on the upside in most industries, the report also showed more than 347,000 such openings in the construction industry in June - up from 323,000 in June of last year. The report also indicated that the rate of job openings in the West and South has stabilized at 4.6 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively, between June of this year and June 2018. The Northeast and Midwest saw slight decreases in job openings in the last year. The number of construction industry job openings peaked in April of this year at 434,000. By Garry Boulard |
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