The City of El Paso has issued a Request for Proposals for the updating of one of the most popular public swimming facilities in the city.
Named in honor of a former and greatly admired swimming coach, the Leo Cancellare Aquatic Center features a seven-lane pool and shares the same site with the Polly Harris Senior Center, located at 650 Wallenberg Drive. In April members of the El Paso City Council voted to authorize more than $141 million in general obligation bonds as well as certificates of obligation for any number of deferred capital improvement programs throughout the city. Of that amount, just over $2.6 million is set to target long-planned repairs to the Cancellare facility, on the west side of the city. The idea behind the upgrade work, say city officials, is to extend the useful life of a facility that was built just over 40 years ago. The City of El Paso has issued a Request for Proposals for that upgrade work, with a submission deadline of September 15. By Garry Boulard
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![]() The City of Santa Fe has issued a Request for Proposals for work relating to the expansion of the Santa Fe Municipal Airport terminal building. Located at 121 Aviation Drive, the airport is the second busiest commercial airport in the state, with officials long arguing in favor of a 10,000 square foot expansion of the terminal, saying that the present facility is too small for current needs and generally out of date. It has been thought it could ultimately cost more than $21 million to both update the terminal and improve roads and parking lots belonging to the airport. Last year the airport received $1.7 million in federal Department of Transportation funding for the design and reconstruction of the facility’s taxiway. The project will include site demolition, the moving and relocation of existing utility lines, the building of metal railings, wood trusses, deck and framing, and custom casework, among other work. Built in 1957, the terminal, which prior to the Covid-19 outbreak served just short of 1,000 people a day, underwent updates in 1988 and 2004. The RFP has a submission deadline of September 16. By Garry Boulard More than 37,000 new jobs in the manufacturing sector were created in August.
But those numbers, just released by the Department of Labor, also show the impact that covid’s Delta variant is taking on the economy as retail jobs saw a 28,000 loss for the month, followed by government employment, with an 8,000-job decline. For its part, the construction industry experienced a decline of more than 3,000 jobs over July. According to Data Digest, published by the Associated General Contractors of America, “the gap widened between residential and nonresident employment” in August. Residential employment, which includes both residential building and specialty trade contractors, was actually up by 17,400 jobs in August. The real industry loss was seen in the nonresidential sector, which includes heavy and civil engineering construction, posting a decline of 20,300 jobs last month. The largest employment gainers were seen in the professional and businesses services category, which saw a jump of 74,000 new jobs in August, and the transportation and warehousing sector, up by 53,200 jobs. Overall, the national economy saw a gain of 235,000, a number considerably lower than the 720,000 many analysts had predicted. President Biden pointed to the emergence of the Delta variant as the prime reason for August’s somewhat lackluster employment growth, remarking: “Too many have not gotten vaccinated, and it’s creating a lot of unease in our economy and around our kitchen tables.” In a statement, Anirban Basu, chief economist with the Associated Builders and Contractors, agreed that the Delta variant was taking a toll on new job growth, but argued that “construction employment dynamics were more affected by ongoing supply-side bottlenecks.” “Anecdotal evidence suggests that many projects have been put on hold,” Basu continued in a statement, adding, “This is due to lofty construction costs, which is the result of global supply chains in disarray and growing difficulty hiring skilled construction workers.” By Garry Boulard ![]() A three-story Beaux Arts-designed structure in downtown Denver may soon be in line for an update. Located at 1000 Broadway, the building went up in 1926, during the heyday of that decade’s economic boom and, perhaps not surprisingly, originally served as a spacious showroom for luxury Chrysler cars. What was the Cullen-Thompson Motor Company Building eventually became the Gart Sports Castle, housing a large department store known for its wide variety of sporting good offerings. Vacant for the last 5 years, the structure has now been purchased by the Denver-based Hyder Construction, which has announced plans to build new retail space on the building’s ground floor, along with office space on the upper floors. The project may also include the building of a new penthouse level. The 45,000 square foot building is regarded as an architectural treasure, with its stained-glass windows and terracotta exterior. It was hailed in the publication Progressive Architecture upon completion. Designed by architect Jacques Benedict, the building additionally includes transoms bearing the Chrysler Company’s winged wheel logo and roof top finials. According to reports, it is the last building designed by the famous architect to still be standing in Denver. The renovation and updating of what is popularly known as the Sports Castle building is expected to begin sometime in 2023. By Garry Boulard ![]() Members of the University of New Mexico’s Board of Regents have given their approval to a project that will see the upgrading of a series of exterior stairwells that are a part of the school’s Student Residence Center. A structural assessment undertaken last year by the Albuquerque-based Heatly Engineering Incorporated revealed that the metal stairs in the complex, which was built in 1991, had deteriorated to the point of needing either immediate repair or replacement. The Center, located on the center east side of the campus, is made up of a dozen different-shaped three-story buildings encompassing some 140,000 square feet and housing six-room and two-bath apartments. The $550,000 project approved by the Regents will see the stair work taking place in Buildings D, F, and G. According to UNM documents, the stair work at those three buildings will be done to meet “code and safety requirements.” That work, to be done in three parts, will center on upgrading or replacing 24 back stairs, and a dozen front stairs. The stairs project was one of several campus capital improvement items approved unanimously by the Regents. By Garry Boulard ![]() A move is underway to secure additional federal funding for public transit and high-speed rail projects in the big $3.5 trillion spending bill currently under review in Congress. Members of the American Public Transportation Association, along with more than forty other industry groups, have sent a letter to the leadership of the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure, as well as the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee asking for a minimum of $10 billion for a variety of transit projects. Such funding, the communication asserts, will enable industry leaders to “tackle climate change, advance equity, and meet the growing and evolving mobility demands of our communities.” The letter adds that increased funding for transit and high-speed rail will prove environmentally valuable, helping to “transform our nation’s transportation network for a sustainable future.” The House earlier approved the framework for the reconciliation bill, which is designed to expand social safety net programs, on a close 220 to 212 vote. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said she is committed to allowing for a House vote on the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, otherwise known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which passed the Senate last month, before taking up the $3.5 billion budget legislation in late September. By Garry Boulard ![]() A long-discussed plan to build a diesel commuter rail corridor that would connect the cities of Denver to Longmont, with a stop in between at Boulder, will be the subject of a full-scale feasibility study. Board members of the Denver-based Regional Transportation District have voted in favor of spending around $8 million to look at the pros and cons of what would be a roughly 40-mile-long rail on the more populous east side of the state. Public officials in Colorado, including Governor Jared Polis, have been pushing to get underway what could be an at least $710 million construction project. A proposal to build the line was originally approved by Colorado voters nearly 17 years ago, in 2004, with proponents of the idea saying that the line would be fully operational by 2014. Concerns over exactly how much the new line would cost by the time of its completion, which included the rising cost of raw materials, and the extent of its daily scheduled services, are among the factors that have prompted continued discussions about the project but have also led to its construction delay. Estimates predicting that the daily ridership might only be upwards of 5,400, compared with 10,000 or so earlier projected by RTD, may have dampened enthusiasm for the project. The new study is intended to give the RTD an up-to-date picture on costs and function. That study is expected to be completed by the end of 2023. As earlier reported, the RTD FasTracks Environmental Evaluation was completed in 2010 and analyzed the benefits of implementing the route along the right-of-way adjacent to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe rail track. By Garry Boulard ![]() In July under 300 individual border crossing projects are making up the most recent capital improvement program just approved by the El Paso City Council. Nearly $43.million, comprising what is officially called the International Bridges Capital Improvement Program, will go for upgrade infrastructure and improving traffic flow projects. The list includes a very big $32 million for both off-system and on-system Intelligent Transportation System work at the Ysleta Port of Entry, along with $650,000 for toll booth improvements there; and more than $1.2 million for general Americans with Disabilities Act-compliance work. Exactly $750,000 is budgeted for the redesign of a pick-up area at Ysleta; with another $750,000 slated for Ysleta pedestrian improvements. The program is designed to take in all the border crossing facility needs between next year and 2026, and also includes $5 million that will fund a Ysleta port expansion and modernization feasibility study. Funding for the capital improvement program is coming partly through toll revenues of $42.8 million, and some $32 million provided by the State of Texas. The Ysleta Port of Entry was originally built in 1938. An extensive rebuilding in 1990 saw the construction of the current border inspection station. In June, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Ysleta accommodated just over 76,500 pedestrians, 325,000 personal vehicles, and 56,000 trucks. By Garry Boulard ![]() More than 16,000 architects lost their jobs between Covid-19’s onset and last summer, according to a new report issued by the American Institute of Architects. Those 16,000 jobs, according to the report, comprised roughly 8% of all payroll positions at the firms in question. While a significant loss, that percentage is below the 16.5% decline in payroll positions for all industries. The Institute’s Compensation Report indicates that despite those job losses, average salaries for recent architecture graduates in 2020 remained competitive at just under $56,000, with regional differences ranging between $48,000 and $69,000. The survey additionally shows that overall, compensation levels in the architectural industry increased around 0.3% between 2019 and 2021, significantly lower than the average 2.4% rate for all other professions during the same time period. Benefits as a share of base pay in firms of fewer than 50 employees have also taken a hit, dropping from 18% in the last decade to around 14.4% in 2020. In a statement, Kermit Baker, chief economist with the American Institute of Architects, noted that “while we have seen an unprecedented recovery in architecture firm billings during 2021, this report provides a valuable snapshot of the impact the pandemic had last year on firm compensation and employment levels.” Despite the downer role of the pandemic, analysts believe the architecture industry should once again be booming in 2022. In the field of what’s good for builders having to be good for architects, the Institute last month released a report indicating that nonresidential construction is expected to be on the upside by some 4/6% next year. By Garry Boulard ![]() A more than 70-year-old building that for decades has been the home of the American Legion Post 1 in downtown Phoenix may soon be integrated into a larger mixed-use development with 132 apartment units. Members of the Phoenix City Council have given their approval to a plan that will keep the one-story American Legion at 723 W. Polk Street largely intact, while allowing for the construction of the new complex. The project developer is Cardinal Capital Management, which is based in Madison, Wisconsin, and has developed multi-unit residential projects in the Midwest, South, and West. The 1.7-acre site is owned by the City of Phoenix, which has long wanted to redevelop what is officially called the Luke-Greenway American Legion Post 1. In releasing a request for proposals nearly 2 years ago, the City specifically required that any redevelopment at the site must include affordable units with a preference for veterans. The City is additionally requiring that some 30,000 square feet of veterans community support service must be a part of the project. The property, with a 100 year-lease for the American Legion, was turned over to the city at the end of World War I, becoming one of the first such American Legion posts nationally. The post has long been a social destination for veterans and their families and is perhaps most known for its retro-décor lounge. Plans call for preserving the original building’s meeting hall, kitchen, and canteen space. The redevelopment will also see the creation of a 6,500 square foot park and socialization area. By Garry Boulard |
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