BUILDING PERMITS

Building construction permits over $10,000 in value that were approved in Boulder between Jul. 7, 2014 to Jul. 13, 2014. Listed below are: the case number; address; total project valuation; owner name; contractor (if applicable); and description.

PMT2014-00321 825 Circle Drive; $721,596.83; Dino Pionzio; new two story house with walkout basement and two attached two-car garages. House to contain six bedrooms and six and a half baths with a total of 7,183 square feet of finished living space.

PMT2014-00435 3265 Lafayette Drive; $1,053,000.00; Karen Bernardi; construction of new, two-story home. Lower level to be 3,152 finished square feet. Main level to be 2,937 finished square feet with an attached three-car garage (708 square feet). House to include five bedrooms and six and a half baths.

PMT2014-01606 1600 28th St., 1216; $104,976.72; Ball Charlotte; Spectrum General Contractors I; interior, non-structural tenant finish for restaurant ("Motomaki"). Applicant indicates prior use was also a restaurant. Scope of work includes reconfiguration of seating areas and new sushi bar. Includes associated MEPs.

PMT2014-02455 3026 11th St.; $64,000.00; Victoria Sahami; Prana Construction Inc; new detached two-car garage.

PMT2014-02518 2750 Broadway; $17,500.00; Med Boulder; Aarco Wireless No. 38; Elec Solution; removal and replacement of three panel antennas, addition of two new associated cabinets and six new RRUs on medical building, Minor modification approval per ADR2013-00213.

PMT2014-02711 3375 Mitchell Lane; $158,000.00; Harrington Stanko Construction; See ADR2014-0073 for minor modification. This building permit application is for the structural support to the PV system under PMT2014-02707.

PMT2014-02716 1305 Fifth St.; $12,000.00; Lisa Hogan; existing shed dormer to be raised 2 feet to provide greater headroom and taller windows to the west. Scope of work to be 160 square feet.

PMT2014-02781 780 Juniper Ave.; $57,487.77; Christophe Jacobs and Abby Jacobs; Field West Construction, LLC; new 540-square-foot detached studio having a 247-square-foot covered porch. Scope of work includes associated MEPs.

Continued here:
Boulder building permits: July 21, 2014

July 20, 2014, 9:30 p.m.

FORMER North Ballarat Football Club player Darren Jolly will make his reality television debut on Sunday night.

FORMER North Ballarat Football Club player Darren Jolly will make his reality television debut on Sunday night.

The AFL premiership player, who hails from Lexton, will join four couples as they tackle an abandoned 1980s office building for the next series of The Block.

With a passion for building and renovation, Jolly decided to begin studies in building and construction after his departure from the Collingwood Football Club at the end of the 2013 season.

Having just completed renovating their Victorian property in Melbourne, Jolly and his wife Deanne couldnt resist applying for the next series of The Block.

After footy finished there were wild thoughts of what to do next, he said.

We love The Block, so we thought lets just give it a go and apply.

The Blockheads are set to renovate the most complex block yet, a 3540 square metre glasshouse building in Prahran.

We were under no illusion it was going to be easy, he said.

Original post:
Former Magpies player Jolly on new season of The Block

MANKATO Howard Vetter may be the only person who can walk up to the Mankato post office and point to where the original 1890s building and the 1930s addition were stitched together using 400-million-year-old Mankato Kasota limestone.

"I defy anyone to know where the original building and 1930s building started and ended. That's a fine example of the fine quality of the stone," said Vetter, of Vetter Stone, which still produces the stone for buildings around the world.

Vetter's grandfather, Bernard, was in charge of building the stone structure in the 1890s, his father, Paul, held the same position when the large 1930s addition was built and Howard oversaw a large addition on the back of the post office in the 1960s.

"We have a lot of architects who visit and we always bring them to that building," Vetter said.

In the late 1800s Mankato was one of the largest cities in the state and in need of a post office that reflected that status.

Beginning in 1854, mail that came via coach or steamboat was handled by general store owner George Marsh. Over the years there were several different, small post office buildings around town.

Beginning in 1895, workers began building the post office and federal court building using locally quarried Mankato Kasota stone. Designed with a Richardson Romanesque style, the post office had a striking four-sided clock tower atop its roof.

The $100,000 building was opened the following year with the federal courthouse taking the second level.

Vetter said the original stone would have been hand chiseled out of the quarry near Kasota and the rough blocks delivered to the work site. "They would have cut and finished the blocks all by hand."

The four-faced clock tower was illuminated by 24 gas jets, and its pumps were powered with city water. It required frequent repairs, though, and was removed when the building was expanded in 1933.

Read more:
Late 1800s growth brought need for big post office

JOSEPH JOHNSON/Fairfax NZ

STILL STANDING: CTV building designer David Harding was the principal engineer on this five-storey Christchurch building on Moorhouse Ave.

The designer of the Canterbury Television (CTV) building, which collapsed in the Christchurch earthquake killing 115 people, also took the lead on a five-storey office block in the central city 20 years later.

David Harding, who was found by the Canterbury earthquakes royal commission to have been working "beyond his competence" when designing the CTV building in 1986, was the principal engineer on the building at 22 Moorhouse Ave in 2008.

Tenants in White Fox & Jones House, which overlooks Hagley Park, include Samsung, GE Energy, GCA Lawyers, Opus and law firm, White Fox & Jones.

Harding, principal of Harding Consulting Engineers, was the "engineer on record" who signed off the design. It is understood Harding worked on the foundation design at 22 Moorhouse Ave, while son Matthew Harding, a Sydney-based structural engineer, did the calculations and computer modelling.

An Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (Ipenz) disciplinary committee hearing last week was told David Harding had not designed a multi-level building since the CTV building.

The Sunday Star-Times sought clarification from Harding's lawyer Michael Kirkland about the roles David and Matthew Harding had in the design and why Harding took on the project after more than 20 years between multi-level designs, but received no response.

The building was constructed by Amherst Properties, which confirmed David Harding was the principal engineer.

Amherst property manager Robyn O'Brien said it was built to the "highest construction standards" and met the building codes. It was assessed after each earthquake event in 2010 and 2011, did not sustain any structural damage and was deemed safe to occupy, she said.

Original post:
Engineer quiet about office block

LOWER MACUNGIE TWP., Pa. -

Three huge warehouses and an office building unanimously were approved by Lower Macungie Township commissioners Thursday night.

They are the first construction projects planned in David Jaindls controversial Spring Creek Properties subdivision, which encompasses more than 600 acres in the western part of the township.

Bethlehem-based Liberty Property Trust, which will erect and own the four neighboring buildings, anticipates construction will begin this year and that they will be leased by next year, according to Bill Bumber, that companys vice president of development.

Were currently seeking tenants, said Bumber.

The four properties together will be known as Liberty at Spring Creek. They will occupy more than 230 acres in the Jaindl subdivision.

A couple of township residents, as well as one from nearby Alburtis, voiced concerns about the warehouses before the vote.

Township resident Robert Mihok told commissioners other residents have no idea how the warehouses will forever diminish the quality of life in Lower Macungie.

These warehouses belong in an industrial park off the interstate, said Mihok.

Township officials explained steps being taken by the developers to improve traffic particularly the inevitable increase in tractor trailer-traffic --- as well as to reduce stormwater run-off and even make the massive buildings less conspicuous to the public.

See the article here:
3 huge warehouses coming to Lower Macungie

Pet Emergency Clinic PS, currently located at 21 E. Mission north of downtown, plans to construct a larger veterinary office building on an adjacent lot, a predevelopment application submitted to the city of Spokane shows.

The envisioned $3 million structure would have up to 18,000 square feet of floor space, with a 12,700-square-foot main floor and a smaller second floor and basement, the application shows.

Baker Construction & Development Inc., of Spokane, is the contractor and applicant on the project.

Animal Arts Design Studios, a Colorado-based architectural company that specializes in veterinary offices, is designing it.

Michael ODea, a veterinarian and a principal at Pet Emergency Clinic, says the after-hours emergency veterinary practice hopes to begin work on the project before winter and move into the new building by midsummer next year.

Our goal is to have larger space for additional veterinary specialists, he says.

The project site is located at the northeast corner of Mission Avenue and Division Street.

Just east of the project site, Pet Emergency Clinic occupies a 6,600-square-foot building with one story and a partial basement where it operates after hours on weekdays and 24 hours on weekends and holidays. During weekday business hours, veterinary specialty practices Inland Empire Veterinary Imaging PS, Veterinary Surgical Services PS, and Internal Medicine Services lease the space. Dermatology for Animals PC, an Arizona-based practice, also has a part-time clinic at the building, ODea says.

The building is 100 percent occupied 24 hours a day, he says, adding that the specialty practices there now also will move to the planned building.

Pet Emergency Clinic has a staff of 40, and the specialty practices altogether employ about 27 people, ODea says.

Read more from the original source:
Pet emergency practice plans North Side clinic

Thursday, July 17, 10:10 AM EDT

By Karen Brune Mathis, Managing Editor

Santa Monica, Calif-based Hertz Investment Group acquired a five-floor, almost 42,000-square-foot office building at 135 W. Bay St., next to the tower, and a nine-story, 93,000-square-foot parking garage at 25 W. Forsyth St.

Hertz Investment Group Executive Vice President James Ingram said Wednesday the West Bay Street building is attached to the tower and is occupied by Florida Bank.

Ingram said the West Forsyth Street garage provides an additional 650 parking spaces for the tower. He said the parking is strictly for Bank of America Tower tenants.

Hertz bought the structures from Jacksonville Tower Associates LLC, which is Parmenter Realty Partners of Miami.

The 696,672-square-foot Bank of America Tower at 50 N. Laura St. is Jacksonvilles tallest office building. It includes a parking garage within the structure.

The sale of the buildings was recorded Wednesday with the Duval County Clerk of Courts.

JPMorgan Chase Bank issued an almost $51.9 million mortgage Friday to Hertz Jacksonville for the three buildings.

The market value for the three buildings totals almost $74.7 million, comprising $71.2 million for the tower, $2.11 million for the adjacent office building and $1.37 million for the garage, according to the Duval County Property Appraiser.

See the rest here:
$88M bought 3 Downtown buildings

McGough Construction created forms like this one in its White Bear Lake warehouse and transported them to the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts construction site in downtown St. Paul. The forms were then filled with concrete and assembled on the site. (Submitted photo: McGough)

In the sustainability world the discussion has largely focused on renewable power and improving architecture and building infrastructure to reduce energy use.

A quieter part of the sustainability story is the evolution in construction techniques and materials acquisition that reduce waste, energy and various inefficiencies at building sites.

Rick Carter, senior vice president of LHB Corp.s Minneapolis office, said green construction techniques play only a small role in achieving LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the Washington, D.C.-based United States Green Building Council.

The USGBC works on a point system, and most of those awarded come from a buildings design, location, orientation, and its materials, to a smaller degree.

Lean manufacturing, in contrast, wins no points for contractors but contributes to less energy expended at a site. I think this is an important element, especially if you have a general contractor who is knowledgeable and able to pull something off in terms of sustainability, Carter said.

For contractors, a strategy for saving time and materials can lead to higher profitability and the good feeling of not creating unnecessary waste. Heres a look at five techniques that are having the greatest impact on sustainable building construction.

Prefabricating materials in controlled environments

Constructing as much of a structure in a controlled environment as possible has improved the quality of buildings and resulted in less trash, said Spencer Finseth, principal of Minneapolis-based Greiner Construction.

Being able to cut materials precisely decreases waste and creates buildings that are strong enough to allow contractors to use wood framing as high as five stories, he said.

See the original post here:
Techniques evolve for sustainable construction

A three-story, mixed-used office building proposed at 385 Sherman Ave. in Palo Alto is too big and will exacerbate existing parking and traffic problems, according to residents who live nearby.

The 55,566-square-foot project from Daniel Minkoff would replace an existing one-story 21,600-square-foot office building. The plans call for three floors of commercial office space and four residential units overlooking Sarah Wallis Park.

The city's Architectural Review Board is slated to review the project when it meets Thursday.

More than a dozen residents have raised a myriad of concerns about the project in letters and emails to the city. Dwight Clark, who lives at Birch Court, said the proposed building's 45-foot height combined with short setbacks would result in a loss of privacy and sunlight.

"The overarching point for me and my neighbors: the building is simply too massive," he wrote. "In a block made up of a city park and residences, it overwhelms everything else and simply is out of proportion with the neighborhood."

Others said it would exacerbate parking and traffic problems in the California Avenue area.

According to a report by Senior Planner Russ Reich, the project would provide the required amount of parking through an underground garage with 103 spaces and by continuing to pay into a parking assessment district for 70 spaces.

"The number provided is not even close to the number of spaces a building of that size will require to provide parking for the tenants and people visiting the tenants," wrote Terry Shuchat, the owner of Keeble & Shuchat Photography, a camera store at 290 California Ave.

A transportation impact assessment by Fehr & Peers in May, meanwhile, found that nearby intersections would continue to operate at acceptable levels of service if the project is built.

Kevin Kiser, another resident of Birch Court, isn't convinced.

Follow this link:
Palo Alto: Proposed mixed-use building draws concern from community

Construction crews poured the first of four concrete batches Tuesday at Park and Main where the new NorthWestern Energy office building will soon begin to rise.

Pioneer Concrete of Butte used about 600 yards of concrete to create the foundation footings. Traffic on Main Street was occasionally blocked.

Things are going very well, said company spokesman Butch Larcombe. Were trying to use as many local contractors for jobs as we can.

The other pourings will occur on July 21, 22 and 28, and will also block traffic. Larcombe said that thecompany is working to avoid disruptions, and appreciates the communitysunderstanding.

Work began on the space, which was previously occupied by a parking lot and Heritage Park, in June. The concrete work, which should account for much of the buildings shell, is scheduled to be finished by December, and the whole project should be completed by December 2015. Crews are slated to continue as much work as possible during the winter.

The project is estimated to cost more than $25 million and involve 200 jobs directlyrelated to the construction. Once completed, the five-story building will occupy 110,000 square feet and ring up almost a million dollars in annual tax revenue for Butte-Silver Bow County.

The sites most recent structure, the Medical Arts Building, burned and collapsed in 1973. During excavation of the NorthWestern site, they found old clothing and a sign for Weins Mens Store, which occupied the building. Weins is now located further east on West Park Street.

See more here:
Pour it on: Concrete flows for new NWE office building