apartment owners and operators looking to new congress to outlaw controversial "drive-by" litigation11/13/2018 Appraising the changed composition of Congress in the wake of Democrat mid-term victories, the National Apartment Association is hoping that several initiatives important to apartment complex owners and operators will be tackled. But probably none is as controversial as a push to prohibit what are known as “drive-by” lawsuits brought against apartment owners under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Those lawsuits, notes Greg Brown, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Apartment Association, have seen businesses being sued for minor or technical violations of the law. Those lawsuits are often filed by plaintiffs who have allegedly done nothing more than “drive by” a given business, document the address, and charge that the business is in some way violating Title III. According to various sources more than 5,000 such lawsuits are filed annually, with businesses paying in excess of $50 million in lawyer’s fees. In an article for the Arlington-based NAA entitled “What Does This Mean: Looking Ahead to the 116th Congress,” Brown suggested that apartment owners and operators would actually like to see “drive-by” legislation enacted before the current Congress goes out of business. “The clock is running out on two of our current legislative priorities, meaning that the objective we set for ourselves is likely not to be met in full,” writes Brown. “This includes comprehensive reform of the National Flood Insurance Program and mitigating so-called ‘drive-by’ lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act.” Should the exiting Congress fail to act, Brown predicts of the two issues: “We will bring these back in 2019.” The NAA will also be increasingly pushing for tax incentives for middle income affordable housing development, as well as working with Congress to find, as Brown puts it, “improvements in efficiency and effectiveness of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.” The NAA is pushing for a greater participation on the part of private apartment owners and operators to be a part of the Section 8 program. “We will also work with lawmakers on incentivizing local governments to bring down barriers to development and increase the supply of rental housing,” writes Brown. Besides apartment owners and operators, the NAA, with more than 75,000 members, represents management executives, property managers, leasing consultants, investors, developers and builders, among other players in the national apartment industry. By Garry Boulard
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The result of an online survey being conducted by the Socorro Consolidated Schools District may go a long way in determining several future facility projects. For the last several months, district officials have been trying to decide whether to upgrade both an existing elementary and middle school, or build an entirely new facility that would go up next to the existing Socorro High School at 1200 Michigan Avenue. Animating the discussion is the current condition of the Zimmerly Elementary School at 511 El Camino Real Street. That school, built in 2006, was closed down by district officials last April after structural issues with the building’s foundation were discovered. In response, members of the Socorro Consolidated Schools Board of Education have been thinking about approving a $4 to $8 million upgrading of Zimmerly and turning it into a middle school. But also up for consideration is a proposal to upgrade and renovate the district’s Raymond S. Sarracino Middle School at 1425 El Camino Real Street. That estimated $17 million work would see an extensive upgrading of the building’s auditorium, cafeteria, kitchen, and locker rooms, while other parts of the structure would be demolished to make way for new construction. Yet another option would see the construction of an entirely new middle school that would most likely go up on the southwest side of the existing Socorro High School. That project would probably cost about $15 million and would see the construction of a building housing gymnasium and cafeteria space, while sharing classroom amenities with the high school. Although the various proposals have been discussed by board members and district officials in public meetings, the online survey asking residents which option they would like to see is being regarded as pivotal in arriving at a final decision. Respondents will have until this coming Thanksgiving to offer input. By Garry Boulard An animal shelter in Maricopa County that is more than 40 years old and has a number of structural issues may soon be replaced. Officials with Maricopa County Animal Care and Control, which operates two shelters, say they want to build a new facility to replace the current Mesa shelter at Loop 101 and Rio Salado Parkway. That facility has had cooling system problems, cracking walls, and has often not had enough space to house animals. Shelter officials say that the facility is also no longer up to industry standards. Last month, Maricopa County Animal Care and Control issued a “Code Red Alert” announcing that the Mesa shelter, built to house 300 dogs, was well over capacity with more than 350. The possibility of expanding the Mesa shelter was looked into, but deemed not cost-effective, given the age of the building. Instead, a new structure is slated to go up on land already owned by the county at the intersection of Mesa Drive and Baseline Road in the East Valley. As proposed, the new shelter would have more treatment and recreation space for the animals. Cost for the entire project has not been announced, but should be known once the $1.8 million design process for the facility is completed within the next several months. The other county animal shelter is located in Phoenix at 27th Avenue and Durango Street. Together, the two shelters house, treat, and process an estimated 40,000 animals every year. By Garry Boulard The cost of needed materials for construction projects is showing a continuing increase as 2018 nears its end. According to a new report just issued by the Associated General Contractors of America, the producer price index for construction materials was up by 0.6 percent last month. That increase follows a smaller rise from the month before of 0.2 percent. Overall, prices have now risen some 6.6 percent since October of 2017. The greatest price increases for most of 2018 have been seen in petroleum-based products and metals. Diesel fuel registered a 27 percent price increase in the last 12 months, while the producer price index for steel mill products has gone up just over 18 percent. In response, contractors and subcontractors, to compensate for the new costs, have raised their project bids, part of a process that experts believe is bound to accelerate in the next few months. In a statement, Ken Simonson, chief economist with the AGC, said the “tariffs imposed on steel, aluminum, and thousands of Chinese imports are starting to affect the cost of many items used in construction.” Simonson added that as supplies of construction materials purchased before the spring tariffs of this year were imposed continue to dwindle, “contractors are likely to face even higher costs, which they will need to put into their bid prices if they hope to make any profit on future projects.” By Garry Boulard A well-known Denver developer, who has been behind some of the largest and most ambitious planned communities and high-rise office projects in the city, has announced plans to significantly expand an existing and robust industrial park. L.C. Fulenwider Incorporated wants to build out what is known as the Denver International Business Center. That property, located off the intersection of E. 72nd Street and Tower Road, has already seen a large amount of commercial construction, including hotels, offices, and restaurants. But Fulenwider is now envisioning what could ultimately turn into a $110 million project that would significantly expand the site, allowing for yet more retail and industrial construction, as well as both office space and hotels. Located just to the west of the Denver International Airport, the Denver International Business Center would see the creation of a “metropolitan district” allowing for the use of property tax revenue to pay for smart infrastructure, street lights, transit services, and signage, among other things. Full development of the additional property could take up to 30 years. The 300-acre International Business Center was launched more than 20 years ago and quickly saw the construction of some half a dozen hotels with a building value of over $50 million. Fulenwider traces its Denver roots to the 1930s and developed the city’s first residential condominiums in 1959. By Garry Boulard Work could begin two years from now on one of the largest New Mexico Department of Transportation projects in recent memory: the $46 million modernization of the always-busy I-25/Montgomery Boulevard interchange. “We had our kick-off meetings for this one in late August,” reports Jill Mosher, assistant district engineer with NMDOT. “We talked with our technical support group, giving them a high level vision of what the project is all about, and working on our scheduling with them,” Mosher continues. What the project is all about, by almost anyone’s definition, is size and efficiency: how to manage a massive undertaking that is going to make life easier for the hundreds of thousands of drivers who use the interchange every day. Part of a larger 460-mile highway that runs north to south from upper Wyoming to southern New Mexico, I-25 is one of the most extensive and busy interstates in the West, providing ready access to Santa Fe, Raton, Truth or Consequences, and Las Cruces, and replacing the old U.S. 85 that went the same route. But it’s when the highway pushes through Albuquerque, which saw the initial work on a four-lane concrete I-25 launched in the ancient year of 1958, that the congestion really starts. According to a report released in January of this year by the National Transportation Research Group, just under 40 hours annually in driving time are lost to congestion on the I-25 in Albuquerque, along with other routes in the metro area. While the NMDOT has been upgrading and widening sections of I-25 in phases, the I-25/Montgomery interchange is regarded by almost everyone as the perhaps the most important link in trying to get highway traffic to flow more smoothly as it pushes through and intersects with a growing part of the city. “It very much is going to be a big project,” acknowledges Mosher, who notes that the interchange work will also be a continuation of widening and improvement projects beginning with the Paseo del Norte Interchange reconstruction. The larger effort has also seen I-25 lanes ready to go between Jefferson Street and San Antonio Drive. Design and analysis for the Jefferson/San Antonio segment began in early 2016 with construction starting in January of 2017 and wrapping up this summer. The Jefferson to San Antonio segment included a widening of the I-25 roadway, building an additional off ramp heading onto San Antonio Drive; the widening of the I-25 bridge over San Mateo Street, and the widening of the southbound I-25 roadway, adding yet a fourth lane between Jefferson and San Antonio. That $9.5 million project additionally included the building of intelligent transportation system infrastructure and overhead signage, among other features. Work will launch on the pivotal I-25/Montgomery interchange in either late 2020 or early 2021, and will in many ways be a project that in its essence is responding to historic population shifts in the city. Located about 5 miles to the northeast of downtown Albuquerque, the I-25/Montgomery interchange feeds into and serves one of the fastest-growing parts of the city, an area of ever-newer commercial properties, large multi-family homes, and even larger multi-family apartment complexes. At the same time, I-25 itself travels through a city that has also seen its own overall population grow from 384,000 just a little over two decades ago to nearly 560,000 in 2017, according to the latest U.S. Census figures. Officials with the Mid-Region Council of Governments, looking at an additional likely increase of more than 200,000 people in the next generation, are crafting a metropolitan transportation plan, the purpose of which is to take into account the various population shifts in an effort to comprise a transportation blueprint realistically reflecting those changes. That plan is officially called Connections 2040 and has been the subject of several public information meetings this fall. “The idea is to look at the population centers where people are working or could be working, and see what are the developments in those areas, so that traffic models can then be done,” explains Mosher. “From that point on,” adds Mosher, “we’ll get a better feel for what kind of projects we need to take on as we go forward.” By Garry Boulard An initiative that is expected to raise as much as $45.9 million annually for park facility work and maintenance has won the approval of voters in Denver. The measure will secure revenue through a goods and services tax of 0.25 percent and will help the city to whittle down an estimated backlog of $127 million in park facility work. Measure 2A won with just over 61 percent of the vote and will become law beginning on January 1. According to its ballot language, the measure will also provide money for open space work, trails, waterways, and park capital improvements. By creating a dedicated fund for the maintenance of nature, Denver will also be able to create more park space in the future in parts of the city currently lacking in such amenities. By Garry Boulard Winning majority control of the House of Representatives for the first time since 2010, Democrats may be poised to challenge the Trump Administration’s agenda on a number of fronts. But in one area, says California Representative Nancy Pelosi, House Democrats and the White House may find common ground: the need to fund infrastructure projects nationally. Pelosi, who served as Speaker of the House from 2007 to 2011, has told reporters that in an immediate post-election phone conversation with President Trump, one of the issues discussed was “building infrastructure for America, and I hope that we can achieve that.” Pelosi, who appears likely to be elected by members of the House as the next Speaker early next year, noted that although Trump emphasized infrastructure funding during his 2016 campaign, he “really didn’t come through with it in his first two years in office.” But Pelosi also said that the subject of increased funding for road, bridge, airport, and port infrastructure has, to date, “not been a partisan issue in the Congress of the United States.” Last month, Pelosi remarked that the new Congress could “create jobs by investing in new infrastructure projects like our water systems and broadband internet.” In a column for the site MarketWatch, Steven Pressman, a Colorado State University economics professor, noted that while an earlier Trump proposal to fund up to $1.5 trillion in infrastructure projects with an emphasis on private spending was never voted on in the House, a different kind of proposal might do better. Democrats, said Pressmen, would “likely be willing to support something that mainly relies on just federal spending. And Republicans have a reason to go along as well: infrastructure spending would boost economic growth, which is forecast to slow in 2019—just before the 2020 elections.” By Garry Boulard In a landslide result, more than 66 percent of New Mexico voters gave a thumbs-up to a bond that will fund just over $136 million in building construction and improvements on the campuses of a number of higher education schools across the state. General Obligation Bond D will provide $16 million in funding for the phase two Chemistry Building renovation work at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. The school earlier completed phase one of that project, which also cost $16 million and came out of an earlier passed bond. The phase two project will include upgrades to the building’s electrical, mechanical, and plumbing systems, as well as the modernization of both classroom and office space. Additional Bond D funded projects at UNM will include the $4.2 million construction of a new building for the College Pathways to Career Center at the Taos campus; and a new $7 million Reserve Officer Training Corps building that will house Army, Navy, and Air Force programs on the main UNM campus. At the Las Cruces main campus of New Mexico State University, Bond D will fund $25 million for a new Food Science, Security, and Safety Facility; along with a Biomedical Research Center; and Animal Nutrition and Feed Manufacturing Center. Those facilities will be built at three different locations on the campus. The bond will provide some $1.4 million in additional funding for facility construction and upgrade work on the NMSU campus in Alamogordo; $1.6 million for the Carlsbad campus; and $1.5 million for the Grants campus. Also, as part of the NMSU system, Dona Ana Community College is getting $1.7 million for a variety of facility projects on its Las Cruces campus. Meanwhile, Santa Fe Community College is getting $5 million for a number of infrastructure improvements, including upgrades to cooling towers, updated fire protection, and the installation of alternative power generation sources. The Santa Fe-based tribal college, Institute of American Indian Arts, is receiving $800,000 in Bond D Funding for heating and cooling system upgrades in its main Academic Building, which houses classrooms, studios, and offices. By Garry Boulard A controversial proposition that would have increased by 2,000 additional feet the legally mandated space between new oil and gas drilling in Colorado and the nearest home has been significantly defeated. With nearly all of the ballots counted, Proposition 112 was rejected by 57 percent of the more than 1.7 million who voted on the question. The campaign in favor of the zone expansion was largely animated by concerns over the health risks of exposure to hydraulic fracturing activity. But in increasing to 2,500 feet the current 500-foot setback for such developments, a wide variety of Colorado public officials and business groups expressed concerns regarding the economic consequences of the proposition. Oil and gas industry officials warned that the proposition, if passed, could both drastically reduce new drilling activity in Colorado as well as the amount of tax revenue in the state that goes to school districts and local governments. Supporters of the group Colorado Rising, which organized an initial petition drive for Proposition 112, say that despite the defeat they may launch a new effort in 2020 to put a similar question on the state ballot. By Garry Boulard |
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