![]() A historic New Mexico site in the form of a military base has just been listed for sale by a private realtor. Fort Wingate, roughly 15 miles to the southeast of Gallup, was built after the Civil War by the federal government and originally used as a post to monitor the area Native American militia activities. Serving briefly in 1914 and 1915 as an internment camp for refuges from the Mexican Revolution, the fort in the 1920s also became the site of an Indian school. During World War II the famous Navajo code talks were trained at the site, with the larger fort also providing storage space for explosives used on the Manhattan Project. With nearly 30 residential units spread out over a 46,000 square foot site, the fort was decommissioned in early 1993 by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission as part of a cost savings effort. Now listed by Mark Price of Realty One Group Concierge, the site is described as “surrounded by American history,” and additionally includes parade grounds, a gas station, post office and café. The listed price for the fort, whose location is 286 New Mexico State Road 400, is $11 million. The site was also for years home to a growing buffalo herd which was transported to another location after the fort’s 1993 decommission. Fort Wingate has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978. By Garry Boulard
0 Comments
![]() Plans are well underway for the repurposing of a 65,000 square foot building in Longmont to be used by a growing diagnostics product manufacturer. LightDeck Diagnostics, which is based in Boulder, says it want to open a new production facility that will allow the company to increase its output. Launched in 2009, LightDeck has made a name for itself developing diagnostic products that can be used anywhere, particularly in hospital emergency rooms and nursing homes. The company plans to open its new Longmont facility at 1844 Nelson Road on the southwest side of the city. LightDeck raised some $29 million in funding last year. Earlier this spring the company secured a $35.1 million Department of Defense contract to increase production of its Covid-19 antibody test. The Nelson Road structure, built in 1994 and sitting on a 9.2-acre site, was formerly used by a division of the General Electric Company. Members of the Longmont City Council have voted to approve a tax and fee incentives package worth around $300,000 to spur the project’s development. By Garry Boulard Already percolating over the summer, the nation’s inflation rate, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics, reached a new and unanticipated high of 6.2% in October.
The latest figures mark an increase from September, when the rate stood at 5.4%, and a significant jump from this spring’s 2.6%. According to the site Trading Economics, the inflation rate is now at its highest level since December of 1990 and is well above the Federal Reserve Board’s desired annual rate of 2%. “Prices rose across the board,” notes the New York Times of the latest figures, “at deli counters and restaurants and car dealerships.” “It’s looking increasingly likely that consumers will be feeling the effects of inflation for months to come as economies re-open in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic,” reports Bloomberg.com. The new figures show a massive 30% increase in energy costs, with gasoline up by just under 50%. Smaller increases were recorded in housing costs with a 3.5% increase, and new vehicles, seeing a 9.8% rise. Transportation services were up by 4.5%, while apparel took a 4.3% hit. Food prices, meanwhile, are being driven by a combination of labor shortages, product scarcity, and ongoing tariffs, say analysts. The new numbers are proving particularly challenging for the nation’s construction industry, with a 7.3% gain in softwood lumber prices over September, and 4.8% increase in steel mill products. “Inflation continues to endure, particularly in multiple commodity categories that directly impact the cost of delivering construction services in America,” said Anirban Basu, chief economist with the Associated Builders and Contractors. Basu went on to note that the ABC’s most recent Construction Confidence Index now shows that the average contractor nationally “expects profits to decline over the next six months as the combination of high materials prices and an ongoing shortage of workers conspires to put pressure on margins.” By Garry Boulard ![]() In a school district, like many in large cities across the country, with a surplus of older buildings, the El Paso Independent School District may be on the verge of selling some of its property. The largest school district in El Paso and 12th largest in Texas, the EPISD has around eighty schools on just over 90 individual campuses. But it also has a growing list of elementary schools that in recent years have been closed due to declining enrollments. Now EPISD officials are contemplating selling some of the no longer used structures and land. One of the schools on the potential list is the Beall Elementary School in the south central part of the city. Located at 320 S. Piedras Street, that school was shut down two years ago because its student numbers were down. A second facility that could be sold is the Burleson Elementary School, also in south central and closed in 2019, again due to an enrollment drop. That school is located at 4400 Blanco Avenue. For any building or property to be put up for sale, the EPISD board of education must first designate it as surplus. The process for getting rid of the surplus property has in the past seen a building in question professionally appraised, with potential buyers then being given a certain period to submit bids. Last year EPISD also put on sale classroom desks once used at the former Alta Vista Elementary School at 1000 N. Gamma Street, which was also closed two years ago due to a declining enrollment. In 2018 the district sold its Northeast Tennis Center at 4806 Woodrow Bean Transmountain Drive to a real estate company for $3.1 million. By Garry Boulard ![]() An increased demand for senior housing in 2022 could also mean an increase in senior housing construction, say sources. Senior housing has been generally flat since the Covid-19 outbreak which saw some communities experiencing a reduction in tenants, in some cases due to deaths caused by the pandemic. Noted Senior Housing News earlier this year: “In the first quarter of 2021, independent living construction starts were at low levels not seen since 2012.” The market remained dormant for most of this year, but now, according to Multi Housing News, a resurgence may be on the horizon. “The continued roll out and success of the vaccine, as well as the return to near ‘normal’ operations at senior communities has resulted in increased demand from residents and families,” says the publication. It is additionally noted that “continued reductions in Covid-related deaths should result in further positive net going forward.” According to sources, to hold down construction costs some senior housing projects have been proposed in repurposed hotels, motels, shopping malls, old schools, and other structures. Meanwhile, in a nod to the pandemic, those projects are also more likely to see the building of increased multipurpose rooms, larger residential apartments, and defined outdoor spaces. An undeniable factor spurring current optimistic forecasts for the industry has to do with the impact of the massive, but aging, Baby Boom generation. Notes the Multi Housing News: “Increasing demand for senior housing is forecasted as the 85-plus population is expected to grow by 177% to 18.5 million by 2050.” By Garry Boulard ![]() Three new buildings totaling nearly 807,000 square feet are expected to be built in a growing business park in Aurora, Colorado. The Los Angeles-based Majestic Realty Company is the developer behind the Majestic Commercenter, a 1,600-acre master-planned business park that was launched in the late 1990s. In the years since, the park has attracted any number of corporations setting up Class A distribution and warehouse space, and now has a total of around 40 structures comprising some 9.5 million square feet. Now Majestic, as part of the phase two of the park’s development, plans to begin construction by the end of this year on Building 10, which will measure just over 100,100 square feet and will go up at 3100 N. Himalaya Road inside the park. The second structure, Building 11, will go up at 20310 E. 35th Drive and will come in just under 245,000 square feet. The third structure, Building 12, will measure 461,600 square feet and is set for construction at 20600 E. 35th Drive. In a statement, Randy Hertel, Majestic executive vice-president, said the Commercenter “continues to attract and keep an incredible roster of tenants who are taking full advantage of our unparalleled access to the highway, Denver International Airport, and regional distribution and services opportunities.” The ongoing popularity of the park and its business success is generally credited to a mix of new build-to-suit projects, new tenant leases, and continued long-term leases. Those tenants have included Amazon, General Electric, and Fed Ex. Very active in the states of the southwest, Majestic Realty has to date developed more than 82 million square feet of industrial, office, retail and multi-family space. By Garry Boulard ![]() A new gym wing is expected to be added to Albuquerque’s 50-year-old El Dorado High School now that funding has been secured through the passage of a successful bond. The El Dorado High School is located at 11300 Montgomery Boulevard NE and will also see some HVAC upgrade work. The El Dorado work, with a $33.6 million price tag, is designed to be the first two phases of a planned 5-phase project at the school. Altogether, voters approved some $630 million as an obligation bond and tax mill levy for a wide variety of Albuquerque Public Schools facilities projects that will also include the building of a new cafeteria and playground at the Corrales Elementary School, located at 200 Target Road in Corrales. Additional work to be funded by the bond will include the $21.9 million renovation of administrative space at the Hubert Humphrey Elementary School located at 9801 Academy Hills Drive. One of the largest individual school projects will see the $27 million replacement of the Arroyo del Oso Elementary School at 6504 Harper Drive NE. Districtwide projects include the $110 million upgrade of classroom technology, $12 million in school security work, and $15 million for HVAC facility upgrades. The bond question passed with nearly 70% of the vote. By Garry Boulard ![]() Watershed programs administered by the federal Department of Agriculture will receive enhanced funding for flood prevention, water quality, and waste management projects in the just-passed $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. A part of the bill called “Western Water Infrastructure” is providing $1.1 billion in funding specifically for water and groundwater storage projects, as well as pipelines and canals. A statement from the federal Department of Agriculture said the bill will also fund “water efficiency and recycling programs, rural water projects, WaterSMART grants, and dam safety to ensure that irrigators, Tribes, and adjoining communities receive adequate assistance and support.” Up to $300 million in the bill will also go for the repair of watersheds and waterways damaged because of a natural disaster. For states in the West, this will likely mean more funding for irrigation systems construction and upgrades. Up to $300 million is being allocated for the implementation of the Colorado River Basin Drought Contingency Plan, which addresses the Colorado River’s deteriorating storage levels. The bill is additionally committing around $55 billion for the expansion of access to clean drinking water across the country. According to a release from the White House, this means an investment in water infrastructure work and projects to eliminate lead service pipes, particularly in “Tribal Nations and disadvantaged communities that need it most.” Funding for the variety of watershed, irrigation, and flood prevention programs will most likely be offered in the form of federal competitive grants and loans. In a statement Matt Holmes, chief executive officer of the National Rural Water Association, lauded the inclusion in the legislation of “state revolving funds, targeted funding to rural and small communities, and expansion of on-site technical assistance programs.” By Garry Boulard ![]() Plans have been announced for the repurposing of a 10-story modernistic building in Denver’s Golden Triangle Creative District. The structure at 1200 Lincoln Street was originally built for the Western Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company, but for nearly two decades served as the home to the Denver Art Institute of Colorado before that school closed in 2018. In 2019 the Denver-based Nicholas Partnership, which specializes in urban real estate development, purchased the structure for $15.2 million with the idea of turning it into apartment housing. Now work is expected to begin shortly on what is being called the Art Studios building, which will see the construction of 194 studio apartments. The 100,000 square foot structure was designed in the International Style and is regarded by preservationists as an architectural treasure. The renovation of the building will see an art-themed interior style, with the first floor to include some retail space. A part of that floor will also be leased out by the Colorado Photographic Arts Center, and will feature classroom space, offices, and two exhibition galleries. If all goes well, the $35 million renovation of the Art Institute Building is expected to see completion by the spring of 2023. By Garry Boulard ![]() A school district in the village of Dora in southeastern New Mexico is expected to see campus-wide facility improvements after the successful passage of a $3.5 million bond in last week’s election. Voters in the village of around 120 people overwhelmingly approved, with around 78% of the vote, a bond proposed by the Dora Consolidated School District that will particularly target HVAC system improvements. During the campaign, district officials emphasized that the bond was made more feasible due to the presence of the big Sagamore Wind Farm, a $900 million facility operated by Xcel Energy that was completed late last year which has positively impacted assessed property values in the village. The HVAC work will entail replacing some 200 tons of current heating and cooling units that are nearly two decades old with new efficiency systems. Besides the new HVAC work, the bond will also pay for electrical system upgrades, pavement repairs, roof work, bathroom repairs, athletic facility improvements, and Americans with Disabilities Act compliance work. A facility master plan published by the district last month identified up to $15.1 million in capital improvement needs between 2022 and 2027. By Garry Boulard |
Get stories like these right to your inbox.
|