![]() After a rather lackluster September, the nation’s employment growth headed in a decidedly upward direction last month with an overall gain of 604,000 new jobs. The latest numbers show the strongest employment picture since the month before the Covid-19 outbreak in early 2020, with total jobs now at 148 million, compared to the 152 million recorded in February 2020. Labor experts say the October showing is particularly encouraging given that the number was down to around 141 million as recently as this spring. The new numbers, contends the Wall Street Journal, provide the first picture of how things are shaping up after enhanced federal unemployment benefits have expired: “And what do you know? Job growth beat expectations for a change.” “The latest numbers undermine any narrative that the pandemic has caused large masses of people to leave the work force permanently,” observes the New York Times, “whether because of government stimulus benefits or personal factors.” In a statement accompanying the latest survey, William Beach, Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, noted that October’s job growth was “widespread, with notable job gains in leisure and hospitality, in professional and business services, in manufacturing, and in transportation and warehousing.” The construction industry saw a gain of some 44,000 jobs for a national total now of 7.4 million. The nonresidential sector added 33,000 new workers, with specialty trades up by nearly 11,000. “It is encouraging to see continuing job growth in nonresidential construction, but the industry remains far behind the overall economy in recovering job losses from the pandemic,” noted Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associate General Contractors of America. In fact, overall construction industry employment is still around 150,000 less than what it was in early 2020. By Garry Boulard
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![]() A nearly 100-year-old motel property in Colorado Springs may be in line for a comprehensive redevelopment. Located at 3518 W. Colorado Avenue on the northwest side of the city, the one-story Mecca Motel is currently being listed for sale, with an asking price of $3 million. The motel, measuring nearly 8,550 square feet, sits on a just under 1-acre site in a part of Colorado Springs officially designated as an Opportunity Zone. Advertised in the early 1960s as a motel offering twenty modern units, showers and tubs in every room, and air-conditioning by refrigeration, the Mecca Motel has long been a regional lodging mainstay and has several times through the decades been updated. The motel is most known locally for its iconic late 1950s front sign. Listed with the Colorado Springs-based realtor Front Range Commercial, the property today has 21 rooms, with a heated pool and jacuzzi, as well as a manager’s apartment and facility laundry room. While the future of the Mecca cannot be known until a new owner is found, the redevelopment of pre- and post-World II motels has shown signs of becoming a cottage industry. According to the publication Cornell Real Estate Review, such motels could serve as senior and student housing space, offering a “creative solution for small-to-midsized developers scouring for deals in a tight real estate market.” By Garry Boulard ![]() A former rest home in the vicinity of downtown Albuquerque could get a new life as an apartment complex. Plans have been announced for the repurposing of what used to be the St. Mary’s Assisted Living facility on a less than 1-acre site at 205 7th Street NW. The two-story, nearly 14,700 square foot brick building belongs to the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. Built with a modern design and opened in the spring of 1955, the structure housed a Sisters of Charity Convent before becoming an assisted living facility. Now Albuquerque businessman and architect Mark Baker has announced plans to convert the structure into a small apartment complex with 14 market rate units. To be called The Villa, the new complex will include washers and dryers, stainless steel appliances and quartz countertops. Project designer is Baker’s own Baker Architecture + Design. Work on the building could begin later this year, with a rough summer 2022 completion date. By Garry Boulard ![]() After weeks of delay and parliamentary maneuvering, Congress has given its approval to the five-year, $1.2 trillion infrastructure package proposed earlier this year by President Biden. Funding in the bill, which was initially passed by the Senate late last summer, will target everything from bridge and highway construction and upgrade projects, to work on the nation’s energy and broadband systems. In a statement released after the vote, the White House said the legislation will also “help ease inflationary pressures and strengthen supply chains by making long overdue improvements to our nation’s ports, airports, rail, and roads.” As passed, the bill will provide $110 billion for roads, bridges, and major infrastructure. Up to $55 billion will target new and upgraded drinking water systems; with $39 billion going for public transit modernization. According to the text of the legislation, some $66 billion will go for passenger and freight rail infrastructure projects. Broadband infrastructure projects will be funded to the tune of $65 billion, a decrease from the $100 billion the Biden Administration had initially proposed. An additional $7.5 billion will go for the building of a national network of electric vehicle charging stations across the country. Those stations will be built along the nation’s highway corridors. In a statement, Stephen Sandherr, chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, lauded the bill for providing the “kind of funding needed to modernize the country’s aging and overburdened infrastructure.” Paul Skoutelas, chief executive officer of the American Public Transportation Association, called the legislation a “necessary step in providing the transformational investment in public transportation infrastructure that our country so desperately needs.” An opposite point of view was expressed by David Ditch, a policy analyst with the Heritage Foundation, who said the bill stands as a “harbinger for future economic problems.” Ditch particularly criticized funding in the legislation for such things as programs to cool pavement in cities and mandated reports on climate change as initiatives going “far beyond the traditional definition of infrastructure.” The infrastructure bill passed on a 228 to 206 House vote. It is thought that President Biden will sign the legislation into law this week. By Garry Boulard ![]() A feasibility study by the Loveland Housing Authority is underway for the possible construction of an affordable housing project that will be built on the east side of the city. The project will go up on a 4.4-acre site to the west of the Boyd Lake Outlet Canal, a half a mile to the south of U.S. Route 34. As proposed, the project will see the building of 84 affordable multifamily rental homes designed to serve households with Area Median Incomes of 80% and below. In a city where the average monthly apartment rent is around $1,600, any affordable income project is seen as a welcome development. Plans for the site also include the construction of a community center, community garden, and children’s play area. The site will additionally have access to local and regional walking and biking trails. The property for the project is being donated by the Denver-based McWhinney Real Estate Investment & Development Company. The project will go up adjacent to the Greens at Van de Water, a McWhinney complex with 252 upscale apartment units. The feasibility study could be completed by late 2022. If the project makes sense, construction could begin either late next year or early 2023 on a rough 5-year schedule. By Garry Boulard ![]() After a year of sporadic growth, pending home sales took a 2.3% tumble as the market neared its final quarter. According to new figures released by the National Association of Realtors, pending sales were also off by a significant 8% over the same period last year. Regionally, pending sales were down by 3.2% in the Northeast, 3.5% in the Midwest, 1.8% in the South, and 1.4% in the West. The NAR figures are based upon signed real estate contracts for existing single-family homes, condominiums, and co-ops. In a statement, Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR, remarked that the decrease in contract transactions was indicative of a “calmer home price trend as the market is running comfortably ahead of pre-pandemic activity.” Yun additionally noted that, following traditional annual patterns, there will likely be less home inventory in the final quarter of this year, compared with the larger housing stock seen in the summer. The Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metro area was listed as one of the 40 hottest markets in the country, with defined local markets in New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Missouri holding the top three slots. Noting the ongoing increase in average home prices, Yun observed that because apartment rental rates have continued to rise, current renters may soon be seeking out homeownership opportunities, “in order to avoid the rising inflation.” Industry reports indicate that the current average home price is at $408,800, up from 389,400 last year. By Garry Boulard Construction could begin next year on a new fire station that will go up near the intersection of Juan Tabo Boulevard and Central Avenue and will be a part of the Albuquerque Fire Rescue Department.
The project has long been in the talking and planning stage but will now take a crucial step forward in the wake of an election seeing Albuquerque voters approving up to $140 million in general obligation bonds. Of that amount, $7 million will target the construction of the new Fire Station Number 12, which will replace the existing Number 12 station at 201 Muriel Street NE. That facility has been regarded as too small and outdated for current needs. The new station will serve Albuquerque’s International District. Studies determining the most effective location for the new facility were earlier undertaken by the Albuquerque-based firm Consensus Planning, which explored likely response times to specific calls, including those relating to drug overdoses. The approved $140 million general bonds will also fund $5 million for the planning, design, and construction of an additional bay at Fire Station 18, located at 61 Taylor Ranch Road NW, while additionally providing $1 million to upgrade Albuquerque Fire Rescue facilities across the city. The specific city language for the Number 12 project calls for the $7 million in bond funding to be used to “purchase land, plan, design, construction, engineer, furnish, equip, landscape and otherwise provide a new fire station.” The Albuquerque International District comprises a nearly 4-square mile area made up of a diverse population of some 30,000 people. By Garry Boulard ![]() The Austin-based Productive Capital Associates has announced a partnership for the purchase of a 120-unit apartment complex in Denver known for its large student tenant base. Productive Capital and Hybridge Capital Management paid $40 million to acquire The Villas, an upscale housing project located at 2555 31st Street near the Auraria Higher Education Center. Hybridge Capital has since announced plans to upgrade the property. Those plans include the building of a clubhouse, along with a gym and swimming pool. In line with a growing demand in the student housing category, The Villas will also see the construction of a dog park. Specializing in Class B and C apartment communities, Productive Capital has recently repositioned large apartment communities in Columbus, Ohio, and central Texas, among other locations. Hybridge Capital, with offices in Beverly Hills, describes its business model as one that partners with “seasoned sponsors” in any number of multifamily, hotel, retail, and office development projects. According to reports, Hybridge regularly invests up to $10 million upgrading the properties it takes on. The Villas, with monthly rents for 3-bedroom units topping out at around $2,800, is located to the north of downtown Denver, in a one-time industrial area that in recent years has seen a good deal of new apartment construction. By Garry Boulard ![]() After an earlier bond proposal failed two years ago, voters in Mesa County have overwhelmingly approved a measure calling for the building of a new high school in Grand Junction. The existing two-story structure, located at 1400 N. 5th Street, was built in 1955 and has long needed repairs, with cracked interior walls, uneven floors, and both cooling and heating issues. An additional concern: the building’s lack of a modern security system. After an extensive public information campaign, officials with the Mesa County Valley School District 51 learned the news: some 65% of county voters cast ballots approving a bond funding a new building. The $115 million bond will be combined with funding the district earlier received from Colorado’s Building Excellent Schools Today program. An additional $19.5 million will come out of funds originally approved in a 2017 bond vote. If all goes as planned, work on the new high school is expected to begin early next year, with a general completion date of late 2024. By Garry Boulard ![]() The nation’s self-employment sector has expanded by more than half a million jobs in 2021, according to a new survey just published by the Pew Research Center. Like all other areas of the economy, the self-employment industry experienced a hit during the Covid-19 outbreak and subsequent national economic shutdown. In 2019, some 15.4 million people were identified as being self-employed, one of the highest numbers for that segment in years. But by the end of last year, that number, facing the uncertainties of a pandemic economy, had declined to 15.2 million. Now, as of late 2021, the number has regained what was lost during the year of the pandemic—and then some. According to the survey there are now 15.7 million people classified as self-employed. “Changes in self-employment played out similarly among women and men, both of whom experienced sharp losses in employment in 2020 and notable gains in 2020,” notes Rakesh Kochhar, a senior researcher at Pew in explaining the survey. The numbers have also changed, and in a positive direction, for those in smaller businesses who are hired by the self-employed. That number now stands as 107.7 million, up dramatically from where it was a year ago at 98.7 million. Despite the upwards trajectory, however, the survey notes that this segment has not returned to its pre-pandemic glory when the total number was at 110.5 million. The rebound in the self-employment numbers was first significantly seen in the second quarter of this year and has continued onward. According to a separate survey released by the National Association for the Self-Employed, some 43% of respondents characterized the pandemic economy as the “worst economic downturn that they have experienced,” with at least 77% revealing that they were not currently planning on hiring new workers. By Garry Boulard |
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