Now that it has filled office leases on a former bakery site where the city's Larimer, Shadyside and East Liberty neighborhoods converge, Walnut Capital is ready to add far more space on the former Reizenstein Middle School property across the street.

The East End real estate and development firm goes before the city planning commission Tuesday to describe the six-story, 218,000-square-foot office building that will anchor the commercial aspect of the Bakery Square 2.0 project.

Walnut Capital expects to spend more than $120 million overall developing the side of Penn Avenue that abuts Mellon Park, across from the retail shops, eateries and offices of Bakery Square.

It has already begun construction of new housing, which ultimately will include 350 rental apartments and 57 townhouses. The office space at Bakery Square 2.0 is to total 400,000 square feet, with another one or two buildings to be constructed after the first one, said Walnut Capital managing partner Gregg Perelman.

"We're basically doubling down on the office space, which is currently very strong in our niche market," he said. "Part of the reason it's so strong is we're so close to the universities, with strong working relationships with Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh."

Bakery Square filled up more than 200,000 square feet in four years with technology-oriented, university-related tenants such as Google, the UPMC Technology Development Center, Pitt's Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology, CMU's Software Engineering Institute and the VA Human Engineering Research Laboratories.

Mr. Perelman expressed confidence that Walnut Capital was not over-building in the East End.

"We have good opportunities we believe will come to fruition soon," he said. "In this market, you have to be sure about things."

The developer is hoping to begin the new office construction by March, with the building ready for use by tenants by late 2015.

One new physical feature the planning commission is likely to take a close look at is a skywalk over Penn Avenue designed for use by office employees at Bakery Square 2.0, giving them weather-protected access to the existing parking garage across the street. Residents of the apartments and townhouses to be built would use underground parking on their side of Penn.

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Bakery Square developer to present expansion plan

THREE Alangilan councilmen filed a complaint before the City Prosecutors Office against the owner and four other staff of Metro Safari resort on Friday.

Alangilan councilmen Donard Alimpolo, Alex Sausi and Roy Retiza filed a complaint before the City Prosecutors Office against Metro Safari resort owner Francis Rey Cabuga and his associate Eddie Hechanova, spouses Teddy and Ma. Lucia Lizares, and Bonifacio Cahilig Jr.

The councilmen said the Cabuga and the four others committed violation of Presidential Decree 1096 for constructing facilities without the required building permit, and violation of Republic Act 8435 for premature or illegal conversion of land without an approved order of conversion from the Department of Agrarian Reform.

They said that despite the notice of violation and work stoppage order issued by the Office the Building Official and orders by Mayor Monico Puentevella and the City Council, Metro Safari never ceased from doing construction works.

The three said Cabuga did not apply for any permit. They said concrete posts that serve as a foundation of a huge structure are already erecting at the site, excavation works are being done, and deliveries of construction materials are continuing each day.

The owner has shown his stubbornness in following the law where various concerned agencies of the government have already informed him that he needs to secure first permits and clearances, they added.

They said the permits should be secured from the city's Office of the Building Official, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Agrarian Reform, among others, before he proceeds with the construction of his resort at Barangay Alangilan.

In June 11, 2013, Cabuga has written former Alangilan village chief Degie Tanista, informing that he plans to put up a resort with a zoo, clubhouse, swimming pools, camping site, playground, rentable cottages and picnic huts.

Cabuga said he wants to contribute to the tourism industry of Bacolod and be an instrument to the education of children as well as adults in the appreciation of zoo animals.

He also wanted to help foster the creation of more jobs and meaningful employment for the local community of Alangilan.

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Alangilan councilmen file complaint vs resort owner

Posted: 4:00 pm Fri, January 3, 2014 By BrianJohnson Finance and Commerce Tags: BWBR Architects, Cass Gilbert, HGA, HGA Architects and Engineers, JE Dunn Construction, Minnesota Department of Administration, Minnesota State Capitol, Minnesota State Capitol Preservation Commission, Mortenson Construction, Senate office building, State Office Building 4:00 pm Fri, January 3, 2014

Renovation work on the State Capitol is shifting from interior wall demolition and abatement to roof, mechanical and electrical upgrades. (Staff photo: Bill Klotz)

Construction in and around the State Capitol complex looks to heat up in 2014.

For starters, the $272.7 million makeover of the 108-year-old Minnesota State Capitol is transitioning into a new phase, as work moves from interior wall demolition and abatement to roof, mechanical and electrical upgrades.

And planning is moving forward for a proposed $90 million Senate office building project just north of the Capitol, despite a lawsuit seeking to stop the work on the grounds that the project didnt go through the proper legislative channels.

As for the Capitol, the Minnesota State Capitol Preservation Commission is scheduled to meet Jan. 21 to approve work packages 2 and 2A, which include roof repair and replacement, mechanical and electrical equipment installation, and removal of concrete floors slabs.

Roof repairs are expected to start in May, said Wayne Waslaski, director of the Minnesota Department of Administrations Real Estate and Construction Services division.

We are doing some lead abatement work at the moment, Waslaski said. For the most part, demolition has been completed.

The multiphase project, scheduled to be completed in late 2016 or early 2017, addresses a host of deficiencies in the Cass Gilbert-designed building, including outdated and inefficient systems, crumbling stone, and lack of accessibility.

Planning is moving forward for a proposed $90 million Senate office building project just north of the Capitol. (Submitted rendering)

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State Capitol, Senate office projects move forward

The AT&T San Diego Data Center at 7337 Trade St. in Mira Mesa sold for $134.5 million in December, according to CBRE brokerage. The buyer was Carter Validus Mission Critical REIT of Tampa and the seller, AT&T, which leased back the 499,402-squre-foot facility. It was the fourth largest office transaction of 2013, according to Cassidy Turley brokerage.

Five years after San Diego Countys office market troughed, rents, occupancy and construction are recovering at a slow, not always steady, pace.

The most-watched indicator is vacancy rates they were down to 14.7 percent in the fourth quarter, compared with 15.2 percent a year earlier and 18 percent at the end of the recession in 2009.

That slow climb from a deep hole is not a bad thing, considering the office markets history of boom-and-bust cycles.

The scrutiny on these developments is much more in play than its ever been in the past, said Duncan Todd, senior vice president of Cassidy Turleys office division in San Diego.

Other benchmarks revealed conflicting trends:

The region ranked 10th nationally in posting a 4.3 percent rental increase and is now halfway back from the bottom reached in late 2011.

Only 887,000 square feet was leased countywide, down 29 percent from 2012 a horrible bottom line, said Cassidy Turley broker Brett Ward.

Nearly 1.7 million square feet of office space is under construction, 81 percent more than at this time last year.

The five biggest office sale transactions sold for a combined $772.9 million, including the latest, the AT&T San Diego Data Center in Mira Mesa, which closed escrow last month for $134.5 million.

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SD's offices recovering, unsteadily, in 2014

by T.W. Budig ECM Capitol Reporter

One proposed bonding project under fire is the Senate office building.

A provision for the project was contained in last years tax bill, exactly where it should not have been, argued former St. Cloud lawmaker Jim Knoblach, who has filed suit, claiming the language is unconstitutional.

Senate DFL leaders are sensitive about the project, recently sending out a fact sheet about the office building.

In it, its stressed that only part of the proposed $90 million price tag, $63 million, would be spent on the building. About $27 million would be spent on tunnel-level parking for people with disabilities and on a separate parking ramp to serve the Capitol complex and public.

A mock-up of the proposed building, for some reason, brings to mind a ships superstructure perhaps the determined lines of a tugboat.

The buildings glassy facade gently arcs, and though old sea dogs may convulse when spotting white shimmers in the glass, it wouldnt be ice but reflections of the state Capitol across University Avenue.

One criticism is the proposed building does not aesthetically fit into the Capitol campus. Thats in the eye of the beholder. Anyway, unless Capitol architect Cass Gilbert championed a form of aesthetic vivisection, I-94 doesnt exactly fit either, and that didnt stop anyone.

The proposed building, of course, is political catnip.

In a fundraising appeal, Annette Meeks, of the conservative Freedom Foundation of Minnesota, depicted the proposal as the handiwork of liberal legislators, now controlling all of state government, who snuck a pet project into a bill at the eleventh hour.

See the article here:
Column: New Senate office building keeps ‘oracles’ fuming

Published: Thursday, Jan. 2, 2014, 11:42p.m. Updated 5 hours ago

The City Planning Commission on Tuesday will review the first office building proposed as part of the $100 million Bakery Square 2.0 development in the East Liberty/Larimer area.

Walnut Capital of Shadyside, the developer and owner of Bakery Square, is proposing a 218,000-square-foot building in the 6400 block of Penn Avenue. The $27 million project would be opposite the existing office building in Bakery Square and would connect by an enclosed pedestrian walkway four stories above Penn Avenue.

The new building, the first of a possible three with a combined 400,000 square feet, will be six stories tall, according to a suggested artist sketch.

The development, on the former Reizenstein Middle School site, will include two 175-unit apartment buildings and 57 rental town houses. Construction of the first apartment structure will begin early this year.

No one would say whether Google, which is expanding at Bakery Square, might be a tenant of the new building.

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Pittsburgh city planners to review Bakery Square development idea

Photographer: Derek Blair/AFP/Getty Images

R eferring to the group of nations that includes Russia, India and China, Donald Trump Jr. said "With extensive research conducted by our leasing agent, Cushman & Wakefield, we are pleased to confirm that Trump Towers Rio is currently the largest urban office complex in the BRIC Countries."

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R eferring to the group of nations that includes Russia, India and China, Donald Trump Jr. said "With extensive... Read More

R eferring to the group of nations that includes Russia, India and China, Donald Trump Jr. said "With extensive research conducted by our leasing agent, Cushman & Wakefield, we are pleased to confirm that Trump Towers Rio is currently the largest urban office complex in the BRIC Countries." Close

The Trump development is part of Rios efforts to turn the downtown port area into a business and residential hub... Read More

The Trump development is part of Rios efforts to turn the downtown port area into a business and residential hub with a new road network, a light-rail system and close proximity to the citys two airports. Close

Trump Towers Rio will be built in Rio's downtown port area.

Trump Towers Rio will be built in Rio's downtown port area. Close

Trump Towers Rio will help meet rising office demand in Brazils largest city after Sao Paulo.

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Trump Helps Rio Builders After Olympics: Corporate Brazil

RAEFORD - The doctors are in.

Physicians began seeing patients in the primary care and cardiology office at FirstHealth of the Carolinas' new Physician Offices & Specialty Services building in Hoke County last month.

Dr. Mahalia R. Guerrier, an internist, and Dr. Vicki Hardy, who practices family medicine, anchor the primary care practice. Dr. Debbie R. Thomasson handles the cardiology section of the practice.

The 20,000-square-foot facility, which adjoins FirstHealth's Hoke County branch of Moore Regional Hospital, will eventually house offices for several specialties once the months-long move-in is complete later this year.

"In moving here, we're closer to the hospital, so I can go back and forth to the hospital and can take care of things that have to be done at the hospital more easily," Thomasson said Thursday.

She said driving to and from facilities for tests and other procedures can disrupt flow and take time away from patients.

The location also makes access to patients easier for the doctors, Guerrier said.

"We can work in here, and we can still follow a patient over there," Guerrier said of patients admitted at the hospital. "If there's an issue, they can easily call us here, and we can go see the patient."

In addition, physician assistant Jim Shaffer works in the primary care practice and is available to see walk-in patients.

Working in such proximity to the primary care physicians complements her focus on preventive medicine, Thomasson said.

Read more:
New physicians' office building opens next to Hoke hospital

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Photo courtesy of Clark Construction Group

1812 North Moore

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Measuring 385 ft tall, the 1812 North Moore office building is one of the tallest buildings in the Washington, D.C., metro area. Capped by a distinctive steel-and-glass pyramid, the 30-story building provides 600,000 column-free sq ft of office space designed to LEED Core and Shell-Platinum certification standards. The building, which includes five below-grade levels, comprises structural steel and cast-in-place concrete.

To erect the structure, cast-in-place subcontractor Clark Concrete was charged with completing concrete pours over an 87-week period. To perform its contracting responsibilities and keep the project progressing smoothly, the company, a subsidiary of Clark Construction Group, had to maintain a close working relationship with the structural-steel contractor.

Collaboration proved particularly crucial in the construction of the building's north side, which cantilevers over the substation beginning at Level 11. Full-height structural-steel girders supported by 10,000-psi concrete columns support the cantilever from its starting point at Level 11 to the top of the structure, at Level 35. The girders also support two levels of hanging structural steel and slab-on-metal deck, which required the cast-in-place concrete contractor to work around ironworkers as they completed their welds.

Installing 1812 North Moore's signature translucent pyramid also required intense coordination due to the introduction of a bonded, post-tensioned system into the concrete slabs at Level 34, where the building's concrete begins interfacing with the pyramid's steel. To prepare for this, the team cast anchor bolts into the top of the Level 33 concrete columns while structural-steel members were set and encased in concrete. These members had base plates welded to them that support the shoe-and-pin connections for the structural steel trusses. At this level, the structure's perimeter columns become "cranked" and begin to follow the slope of the pyramid's facade.

The building's exterior comprises a curtain-wall skin, metal finishes and a black-granite base. Floor-to-ceiling perimeter glass provides natural light to every floor.

In addition to achieving LEED Core and Shell-Platinum status, the Rosslyn, Va., office building, which was built as a speculative development, also earned LEED Neighborhood Development Gold certification, making it one of the largest commercial green buildings in the state of Virginia.

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Best Small Project (under $10 million)

California is about to run out of money for mapping earthquake faults, leaving many communities across the state with limited information about the seismic risks of new development.

The California Geological Survey has about 300 more fault maps left to complete, including some covering highly populated areas like the Westside of Los Angeles, the San Diego Bay area, and the San Gabriel Valley. But officials say the budget for mapping will run out once the state completes work on the Hollywood fault early next year.

Seismic experts say completing the mapping is crucial because the state's strict earthquake building regulations only apply to faults that have been zoned by the California Geological Survey. The regulations prohibit building on top of faults and require extensive seismic testing for any structure built within about 500 feet of a fault.

The slow pace of the state's mapping has come under new scrutiny in recent months because of several large projects in Los Angeles that were approved on or near the Hollywood fault.

On Monday, state Sen. Ted W. Lieu (D-Torrance) called on the state Legislature to boost funding so the mapping can continue.

California aggressively mapped faults between the 1970s through the early 1990s. Then, a series of budget cuts slowed the effort dramatically. No new fault zoning occurred between 2004 and 2011. The California Geological Survey restarted the effort again using its existing budget, but that money will dry up next year, said State Geologist John Parrish.

At one time, the state had six people focused on fault mapping. That will drop to one person by next year, and no staffers are budgeted after June.

Lieu said that the state's budget situation has improved significantly in the last few years and fully funding fault mapping should be done immediately.

"It boggles my mind," Lieu said in an interview. "Every day across California, local planning departments are making decisions, and we need to make sure that no future buildings are going to be built on fault lines simply because a map wasn't updated."

His remarks come after The Times reported Monday that at least 18 buildings were approved for construction on or near the Hollywood and Santa Monica faults over the last decade without the rigorous studies that would have been required had the state zoned those faults. They include apartments, condos, an office building and a grocery store. Both faults are well-known and capable of producing disastrous earthquakes.

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L.A., Santa Monica buildings may sit atop quake faults