BAMBERG The Bamberg School District One Board of Trustees was updated on construction of the districts new $15 million elementary school and the renovations under way other schools during its May 28 meeting.

Dale Collier, president of Brownstone Construction, reported the elementary school construction was right on schedule.

The new 140,000-square-foot Richard Carroll Elementary School in Bamberg, which will house 4K through 6th grade, is expected to be completed in time for the 2012-13 school year.

HG Reynolds Construction (the contractor) continues to make steady progress towards a successful completion of the school. After gaining approvals during last months Office of School Facilities above-ceiling inspection, the contractor proceeded to install ceiling tiles throughout the school building, Collier said.

He said installation of other finished products was now well under way, including flooring in classrooms and corridors as well as wall and base cabinets.

... HVAC contractors are near completion with their work that included the successful startup of these systems, and fire alarm and fire sprinkler life safety systems were tested, Collier said.

Final paving and striping of both on-site and off-site roads is complete at the building exterior. Workers are also installing exterior lighting, fencing and play equipment. Final grassing and landscaping will (be completed) in the near future to give the new facility a finished appearance.

He said coordination with local utilities provider, the Bamberg Board of Public Works, had gone very well, getting gas, water, sewer, telephone and power connections to the building.

The board has saved us bundles of money and work(s) very well with us, he said of the BPW.

An OSF final occupancy approval inspection is scheduled for June 7 at the site, Collier said.

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Construction official says new school on schedule

TAINAN, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Y.S. Sun Green Building Research Center at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), southern Taiwan, will receive the 2012 Outstanding Engineer Award from Chinese Institute of Engineers (CIE) on June 1 for its innovative and significant contribution to domestic construction in Taiwan.

Also known as Magic School of Green Technology, with an alias of Green Magic School, the center is the first energy-saving and zero-carbon building in Taiwan, using only 35 percent of the energy of a typical office building. It has gained domestic and international recognition for its ecological conception and efficacy since its inauguration in January 2011.

The three-story 4,800-square meter building, the first green architectural education center in the subtropical zone, serves as the university's international conference center and is used to showcase technological innovations in green buildings.

According to statistics compiled by the center, tourist arrivals at the center topped 13,800 from January through April 2012.

The Y.S. Sun Green Building Research Center has drawn attention from people who are interested in living a greener life in times of climate changes, with more than 3,000 people making visits every month.

The Green Magic School has won recognition not only for its exterior design resembling the Noahs Ark and innovative building materials, but also for its avant-garde designs that meet the need for energy conservation, carbon reduction, ecological awareness, waste reduction, and health care.

This year, seven buildings are being awarded by CIE, one of the most influential organizations in Chinese engineering community, aiming to advance engineering technology and techniques for both the engineer professions and the government.

The Green Magic School is the only educational facility in Taiwan to win the honor, as the other recipients are all government construction projects.

In 2011, the Magic School of Green Technology was also Asias first educational building to obtain the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, the recognized standard for measuring building sustainability in the United States and many other countries.

Prior to the LEED certification, the Y.S. Sun Green Building Research Center had gained the Taiwan Ecology, Energy, Waste Reduction and Health (EEWH) Diamond certification, the highest award given by the Ministry of the Interior for green buildings.

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NCKU Green Building To Receive 2012 Outstanding Engineer Award

Last Updated: June 4, 2012 08:17am ET

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A $94-million loan advances the project at 3001 Washington Blvd.

ARLINGTON, VA-Penzance has secured a $94-million non-recourse construction finance loan from SunTrust for its 280,000-square foot office project that it is building at 3001-3003 Washington Blvd., in the Clarendon submarket. Jones Lang LaSalles Wes Boatwright, Jon Goldstein and Mike Yavinsky helped secure the loan for the project.

The amount--$94 million--is eyebrow raising, especially in the current environment. Most construction finance lenders like to keep loans at $50 million, Boatwright tells GlobeSt.com. Needless to say, that limit makes it challenging for developers to do a deal of any size, he notes, especially in a market like DC. They wind up getting financing from more than one source.

This particular project, of course, is a strong one, with a 58% prelease, this to CNA. It also has a strong equity partner in Invesco.

Still, SunTrust is to be lauded for the financing it is providing, Boatwright says. Besides the unusually large size of the loan, the lender offered a streamlined approval process and terms with which the borrower felt comfortable. SunTrust was willing to underwrite the loan but reserved the right to sell part of it, he says. Other lenders said they would commit to the loan, but if they were unable to sell part of it, they would change the terms. The borrower found that to be unacceptable.

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Penzance Secures $94M Construction Finance Loan

Construction on Panera Bread at 481 E. Loop 281 is wrapping up with the complete makeover of a former office building.

The structure is set to be turned over by the contractor to the franchisees as soon as this week.

Earl Taylor, president of Harmony Food Service Texas, which will operate the new eatery, said once the transfer takes place that hiring and training will occupy management for the next few weeks.

As of late this past week, Taylor said the targeted opening date for Panera Bread is June 25. The bakery cafe should employ about 60 workers.

Panera will have interior seating for about 120 people with additional patio seating, Taylor said.

It will also feature a drive through.

DS Construction Services received a city building permit for construction valued at $681,500 months ago for transforming the former radio broadcast offices and studio into a restaurant.

Grand re-opening

The Junior League of Longview will show off the organizations recently renovated building at 1109 N. Fourth St. with a grand re-opening from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

The structure holds offices and meeting rooms for The Junior League along with The Bargain Box retail center featuring Neiman Marcus merchandise.

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Business Beat: Late June opening set for Panera Bread

HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. --

From the outside, the new federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement building doesnt appear to be a typical office.

Located at 518 Sixth Avenue West, the building'swindows are tinted and surrounding the parking lot is an 8-foot chain-link fence topped with barbed wire. But the City of Hendersonville didnt question plans for the site until a zoning inspector took a look inside.

When she did that inspection, she was shown a room that was intended for processing people who are in the custody of ICE agents, said city manager Bo Ferguson.

According Ferguson, the city was aware of who was going to occupy the facility which has been leased by the federal government for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an agency within the Department of Homeland Security.

They described it as an office building, adds Ferguson.

Following the inspection, Ferguson and others now believe the federal government wants to use the facility to process or detain people, which is a problem because the property is zoned for office space.

It's a matter of not what they're doing, but where they're doing it, and I do think we can find a more suitable location," said Hendersonville resident Diane Dorsey Pearce.

Pearces doctor is located across the street from the facility, which has raised concerns from nearby medical practices.

Pardee Hospital administration has told the city that the building violates patient safety.

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Inspection Reveals Plans For New ICE Office

RSV Building Solutions, a Vancouver-based commercial construction company specializing in new construction, remodeling, maintenance and tenant improvement projects, has started a renovation project for AHA! (Alling Henning Associates Inc.), a local communications firm.

The renovation involves expanding AHA!s current office in Vancouvers City Hall building to the entire sixth floor, adding 3,418 square feet for a total of 15,324 square feet of office space. RSV will add 19 new work stations, four new offices, two conference rooms, a kitchenette and will remodel the caf area, including adding a soda dispenser and new cabinetry.

This is a great opportunity to serve such a wonderful local business, said RSV President Ron Frederiksen. AHA! is a fantastic client and we are extremely excited to be a part of its growth.

RSV began construction April 16, and has had workers operate at night to prevent disturbing the offices daytime operations. The first phase of the project includes building out the open space on the 6th floor and remodeling the caf, as well as adding the conference room, with a projected completion date near the end of June. The second phase involves remodeling the former Moss Adams kitchen area, with a projected completion date near the end of July.

RSV worked with LSW Architects and Cohabit Design & Construct on the project.

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RSV renovates AHA! office for expansion

An imposing brick building encircled by black fencing has been growing on Lower Sacramento Road in Woodbridge. It's the new office for the Woodbridge Irrigation District. District staff are still unpacking and sweeping up the last of the construction dust, but the project is complete.

The new office blends Italian and and Spanish styling with a sense of Woodbridge history, and puts district operations right next door to the facilities they manage.

It cost $1 million to build, but the district didn't borrow a cent to pay for it.

"It's bought and paid for," said district manager Andy Christensen proudly. "Now we have a place to convey our rich history. We couldn't do it in the old building."

The district has been in a constant state of construction since Christensen joined them in 1996. Between building the new dam, the fish screen, the fish ladder and now this new building, there seemed to be no end to the projects. But now they are all complete, and the district can turn its attention to improving canals and pipelines in the field.

District staff spent two years planning the building and lining up permits. Designers were keen for the new structure to blend in with other brick buildings on Lower Sacramento Road, such as Cactus Mexican Dining and Woodbridge Crossing.

"We didn't want something ultra-modern," said Christensen.

Spanish and Italian influences are present in the sandy tile floors, the marble counter and open, airy layout.

On the left in the main hallways is a lighted display case full of historical Woodbridge artifacts. It holds rusty mining equipment, photographs of women walking on the 1891 dam and a water level recorder that uses a clock mechanism to mark the change in water level at the dam for a week at a time.

The case is bordered with beams dredged up from 25 feet below the riverbed. District staff ran into the 16 foot beams when they excavated that portion of the river to build the fish screen in 2008. They were the support piles for the 1891 dam. Now the beams are dotted with replica square iron bolts designed to match those used in the original Woodbridge Dam.

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Woodbridge Irrigation opens new office

SUGAR LAND, TX--(Marketwire -05/31/12)- A recently completed study conducted by Thomas Kriger, Ph.D., a political scientist and budget expert, compares the benefits of the Building & Construction Trades Department, also known as America's Building Trades Union to the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) association. Professor Kriger reports that the Associated Builders and Contractors represent less than .03% of U.S. construction establishments (based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics) though it purports to speak for 80%; that it has nominal presence in the United States, compared to the unionized industry, as a sponsor of Registered Apprenticeship; and that its primary focus has been adoption of "model legislation" drafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). For details watch a video webcast of an interview with Professor Kriger on http://www.industrialinfo.com.

View interview with Professor Kriger by clicking link to Industry Today Webcast

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. To contact an office in your area, visit the http://www.industrialinfo.com "Contact Us" page.

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America's Building Trades Union Study Extols Benefits of Union Labor Over Open Shop Labor, an Industrial Today Webcast ...

NORWELL South Shore Medical Center has broken ground on construction of an 80,000-square-foot medical building that will be state-of-the-art and innovative, according to doctors, who described its layout as enabling a team-based health care model focused on illness prevention.

The $20 million Longwater Drive building is also kind of a big deal in Norwell, said Jeff DeMarco, a town resident and president of Campanelli Construction, the Braintree-based company managing the project.

What is really exciting about the facility is that, I dare say, it is the most significant new commercial construction that is happening in Norwell, DeMarco said.

People are going to be talking about it a lot more now that weve broken ground on the project and those in the know are talking about it already, he said of the May 18 groundbreaking. The building is expected to open in late 2013.

With its 100 examination rooms, 70 medical offices, cafe, natural light-filled atrium, and landscaped grounds, the building is being constructed at a fortuitous time for the town, DeMarco said, since it represents an increase in the nonresidential tax base in Norwell on the heels of the recently approved $2.9 million property tax hike.

The new building will be the anchor of a medical campus in Assinippi Park, offering patients easier access, additional parking, less traffic, and more advanced diagnostic and treatment equipment, according to South Shore Medical Center, a division of Atrius Health, which has offices in Norwell, Weymouth, and Kingston.

This is the model of the future in medicine, said Dr. Stan Sacon, chief executive of the medical center, who spoke enthusiastically about the more integrated approach to patient health possible within a space that will allow doctors and medical staff to work alongside wellness specialists, nutritionists, and others.

Were really looking at the whole patient. The old-fashioned approach where it was a row of exam rooms and a doctors office doesnt work anymore, said Sacon, one of the cofounders of South Shore Medical Center, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

We need to do more than just treat illness, he said. We want to keep people as healthy as possible for as long as we can and not wait until they are sick it is good for the patient and it lowers the cost of health care, he said.

Half a century ago, Sacon started the group practice in a Norwell office building, bringing together general practitioners and specialists, a cutting-edge concept at a time when most doctors worked solo.

Excerpt from:
Medical building work starts

Faced with budget concerns, the governor is going against lawmakers' request to proceed with building a new state office building at the site of the former Safeway store on Pioneer Avenue.

By Trevor Brown tbrown@wyomingnews.com

CHEYENNE -- Gov. Matt Mead has ordered the state to hold off on plans that could lead to a new state office building in the Capital City.

Mead said Wednesday that he directed construction officials not to spend $4.4 million, which the Legislature previously approved, to complete the design work for the proposed building.

The designs are needed before legislators would be asked to approve construction, which is expected to cost between $60 million and $80 million.

The building would go up at the site of the former Safeway grocery store on Pioneer Avenue.

Lawmakers wrote to Mead earlier this month asking that he proceed. But the governor said he is using his budget authority to indefinitely suspend action because of budget concerns.

"We are currently reviewing budget cuts that will have an impact across state government," Mead said in a statement. This is not the time to spend money on a large construction project; it is the time for fiscal restraint.

Meads decision also clouds the future for a proposed renovation of the State Capitols interior.

Officials have said the new building could first serve as a meeting place for officials and legislators to work during the renovation, which would overlap at least one session.

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Mead puts office building on hold