For the Record

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(Listed by owner, tenant or building name. This weekly update lists new commercial construction, expansions and enlargements of more than $50,000. Information is from initial applications and is subject to change. Dollar amount is valuation declared by owner.)

M&M Drywall, 4707 S. 101st East Ave., new construction/business office, $325,000.

McCormick Office Building, 1713 S. Peoria Ave., new construction/commerical, $550,000.

Salata, 6030 S. Yale Ave., interior alteration/restaurant, $225,300.

Char Char, 6560 E. 91st St., interior alteration/restaurant, $125,000.

Bancfirst, 7625 E. 51st St., interior alteration/office, $197,000.

Meridian Tower, 5100 E. Skelly Drive, interior alteration/reconfigured offices, $250,000.

(From filings in the Tulsa County Clerks office)

17-024728 Marlene Byrne, Teletalk Therapy Solutions, 2750 N. Seventh St., Apt. 3216, Broken Arrow, counseling.

17-024729 Marlene Byrne, Words of the Heart Greeting Cards, 2750 N. Seventh St., Apt. 3216, Broken Arrow, greeting cards.

17-024853 Antonio Moreno, Northeastern Oklahoma Landscapes, P.O. Box 842, Broken Arrow, landscaping.

17-025171 Cody Nichols, Nichols Pursuits, 204 W. 34th Place, Sand Springs, sole proprietorship.

17-025489 Trenton Dentis, Legend Construction, 4917 S. 265th West Ave., Sand Springs, construction.

17-027022 Jamey Durbin, Barbie Trapp House, 12770 E. 39th St., manufacture and sell clothes.

17-027067 Justin Thompson, Junk Free Removal and Hauling Services, 14453 S. Hudson Ave., Bixby, junk removing and hauling.

17-027199 Olena Lobova, Smiling Kid, 2515 S. 91st East Ave., babysitter.

17-027291 Aleta Capel, Urban Lotus Feng Shui, 401 W. Knoxville St., Broken Arrow, interior decorating and consultations.

17-027406 Daniel Glowacki, Lite Load Concrete, 21661 E. 46th St., Broken Arrow, concrete company.

(Weekly update includes filings classified as business in the numerical list of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District in Tulsa, and which also list business as nature of debt on bankruptcy document.)

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For the Record: Commercial building permits, partnerships, bankruptcies - Tulsa World

Environmentally sustainable real estate is on the rise

By Ely Razin, CEO, CrediFi | bio

Environmentally sustainable real estate is on the rise around the world, with consumer demand a primary driver in the U.S., even though perceived initial cost still constitutes a significant obstacle, according to a report on green-building trends. New data, however, shows the financing costs for some green office-property developments are notsignificantly greater than for non-green construction projects. Commercial brokers across the country that have clients looking to go green should learn about the new financial realities of green financing because its clear the trend is not limited to eco-hip coastal states.

The 2016 green-building trends report by construction industry data provider Dodge Data & Analytics, found that green building globally will more than double in the next three years, with many respondents forecasting that more than 60 percent of their projects will be green by 2018. In addition, the leading sector for green-building growth around the world is commercial construction, the report found.

More interesting to brokers who must find financing for these green construction projects is that the initial costs are not out of line with the costs of non-green construction. Consider these brief case studies that demonstrate the costs and benefits of environmentally friendly construction on office buildings in Illinois, Idaho and New York that went green.

Chicagos trendy River North neighborhood is home to an eight-story concrete loft office building that houses the Chicago offices of cloud-communications company Fuze and digital-media company RhythmOne. It was classified as a Class B building by the Environmental Protection Agencys Energy Star certification system.

The retrofit of this building transformed a 100-year-old steam boiler from an environmental challenge into an environmental asset with the installation of new igniters, tubes, heating elements and insulation. Other changes included improving the cooling towers efficiency and placing $80 modulating control valves on the tenants steam radiators as a cheap way to regulate room temperature and curb energy use.

The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) described this project, which was financed by a $35 million loan in 2015, as one of the buildings driving energy efficiency in Chicago. It was part of the Retrofit Chicago project by the New York-based EDF and the city of Chicago to reduce commercial energy use in participating buildings by 20 percent over five years.

Another Chicago building that is part of the same initiative is a 50-story office tower that once was home to United Airlines. Retrofitting for this all-electric, Class A building was financed by a $150 million loan in 2013. It has been described by the EDF as one of Chicagos most energy-efficient buildings.

The retrofit of this building transformed a 100-year-old steam boiler from an environmental challenge into an environmental asset.

By instituting practices such as collecting and analyzing energy-use data and adjusting the building automation system to pre-cool the building in the summer and pre-heat it in the winter during off-peak hours, building management decreased electrical expenses 47 percent between 2009 and 2012, and the management team has committed to an additional energy reduction of 26.5 percent by 2018, according to the EDF.

The 11-story Banner Bank building in Boise, Idaho, was built on a former brownfield site in 2006 and became the states first multitenant office building to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum certification, the highest-level green-building certificate offered by the U.S. Green Building Council.

The 180,000-square-foot building uses 50 percent less energy and 65 percent less potable water than a conventionally constructed building of similar size, yet was built at the same cost and in the same amount of time as a comparable property, says Nebraska-based building architect HDR.

The Banner Bank building also features geothermal, hot-water heating, evaporative pre-coolers and under-floor air vents. Its water-filtration system captures stormwater from downtown Boise streets and parking lots and uses the rainwater and gray water from the building to flush toilets and urinals, according to the U.S. Green Building Council.

The Bank of America Tower development team sought to demonstrate that ecological principles and economic principles can be made compatible, according to the Massachusetts-based environmental nonprofit Green Education Foundation. To achieve this balance, the 55-story Manhattan skyscraper included green features that cost extra only if those features would pay for themselves through reduced operating costs within five years.

Built in 2009, the 2.35 million-square-foot skyscraper was financed by a $1.3 billion loan issued in 2010. The sloping exterior walls and floor-to-ceiling windows admit extra sunlight into the building, while a filtration system cleans the air before it enters the building and again before it goes back out. The sunlight and clean air actually offer a financial benefit as well as an environmental one, because studies have shown that employee health and productivity can be affected by indoor environmental quality.

Real estate professionals typically expect green construction costs to be higher than they actually are.

The slope of the building also makes it easier to capture rainwater, which is used for cooling and flushing toilets, and allows more light and air into the surrounding neighborhood, the foundation says. The rainwater-collection system and use of waterless urinals are estimated to save 100 million gallons of water per year.

The building also conserves energy by using an onsite power plant fueled by natural gas to provide 70 percent of its annual electrical power needs and all of the buildings hot water. Waste heat from the plant also powers chilling machines that cool the building. In addition, 83 percent of construction waste was recycled.

The 2016 Dodge Data & Analytics study mentioned earlier surveyed more than 1,000 respondents from 69 countries, who reported both environmental benefits such as reduction in energy and water consumption as well as financial benefits.

The financial element could become increasingly significant because federal and state government incentives for environmentally friendly measures are potentially at risk under the new presidential administration. Shortly after taking office, President Donald Trump placed a freeze on Environmental Protection Agency grants and contracts and ordered expedited environmental approvals to fast-track infrastructure efforts.

U.S. respondents to the survey say they expect a 21 percent reduction in operating costs for new green buildings over five years (somewhat less for retrofit or renovated buildings) and an 11 percent cost reduction over one year. Building owners globally report that green buildings provide a median 7 percent increase in asset value over traditional buildings, with about a quarter of respondents saying they expect the value to increase more than 10 percent.

A 2015 U.S. Department of Energy review of energy-efficiency studies that sampled thousands of buildings nationwide found higher rental and occupancy rates for LEED and Energy Star certified buildings, as well as higher sales prices and lower utility costs. Rental rates were found to be 15 percent to 17 percent higher for LEED-certified buildings and 7 percent to 9 percent higher for Energy Star-certified buildings, compared to similar properties that did not have a green-certification rating. In addition, sales prices rose 10 percent to 31 percent for LEED-certified properties and 6 percent to 10 percent for Energy Star-certified buildings, according to the review.

As for the initial costs, multiple surveys have found that real estate professionals typically expect green construction costs to be higher than they actually are. A 2010 study in the Journal of Sustainable Real Estate, for instance, analyzed a survey of 120 lenders, equity investors and developers, and found that a fifth of respondents thought the cost of constructing an environmentally sustainable building would be more than 10 percent higher than a comparable non-green building, and more than half thought it would be more than 5 percent more expensive.

Several analyses of actual construction costs of environmentally sustainable buildings, however, have found they can cost roughly the same to build as standard buildings or only slightly more (less than 2 percent of total costs). Other studies go a little higher, estimating up to 6 percent additional construction costs. The greening of the Bank of America building in the New York case study reportedly added only 5 percent to the cost, and that was for the highest LEED-certification level.

All told, multiple studies indicate there are a lot of potential bonuses to going green: higher rental and occupancy rates, higher sales prices, lower operating costs and healthier workers. Once commercial mortgage brokers realize that initial construction costs for sustainable buildings are often lower than expected, demand for environmentally friendly real estate is growing and ongoing cost savings are created through energy efficiency, they may just find that green is their color.

Ely Razin is CEO of CrediFi, a big-data platform serving the commercial real estate finance market. Reach Razin at ceo@credifi.com.

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Is Green Your Color? - Scotsman Guide News

Patch.com

Charles Schwab (NYSE: SCHW) shows off 469,000-square-foot ... Austin Business Journal Charles Schwab Corp. showed off progress Thursday on its new Austin campus. With one building completely renovated and more structures under construction ... Charles Schwab celebrates opening of new North Austin campus ...Community Impact Newspaper all 4 news articles »

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Charles Schwab (NYSE: SCHW) shows off 469,000-square-foot ... - Austin Business Journal

The Office of Facility Planning and Control (FPC) is responsible for administration of the state's capital outlay budget process, which includes preparation of a preliminary state construction plan. The document outlines state and local projects for possible funding using a mixture of state general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, state and federal cash and often fees and self-generated funds. The proposed construction budget is contained in House Bill 2 which is introduced at regular legislative sessions. The proposed construction budget is sometimes altered during the legislative sessions by lawmakers before becoming law. FPC also administers the state and non-state projects that are ultimately funded, overseeing the contracts from planning through construction and project completion.

The Office of State Buildings, the State Land Office and Real Estate Leasing come under the auspices of Facility Planning. All work together in a collaborative effort to appropriately and efficiently manage the state's finances and fixed assets.

LaGov Vendor Self-Registration(Instructions)

Instructions to Designers Word Files

Construction Bid Advertisements and Results

Small Entrepreneurship Program (Hudson Initiative)

Small Entrepreneurship Program and Veteran-Owned and Service Connected Disabled Veteran-Owned (LaVet) Small Entrepreneurship Program

E-Verify: Frequently Asked Questions

Section 179D Federal Tax Deduction Program

LA Recovery Link

Construction Progress Report (ISIS Quarterly Report)

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DOA Facility Planning & Control

Ninety-three percent of the construction waste from UC Merceds building was diverted from landfills.

Ten years after receiving its first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the University of California(UC), Merced in Merced, California, has earned platinum certification for Classroom and Office Building 2 (COB2).

This marks the campus 17th LEED certification for new construction and its eighth platinum designation. From day one, we made a deliberate commitment to build to highest sustainable standards, Assistant Director of Sustainability Mark Maxwell says. With each new building, were proud to demonstrate that were keeping that promise.

COB2 opened last fall, providing much-needed classrooms, tutorial space, research labs and academic and administrative offices to support the campuss projected growth.

Some of COB2s sustainable features include:

Like many of the campuss other buildings, COB2 pulls chilled and hot water from the Central Plant, which contributes to its high energy efficiency.

Classroom and Office Building 1 is also expected to achieve the campuss second LEED Building Operations and Maintenance (LEED O+M) certification shortly. The Leo and Dottie Kolligian Library earned a gold certificate in Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance in 2015.

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University of California classroom and office building earns LEED ... - Construction & Demolition Recycling

Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

New Zealand to review building design standards after quake Columbus Ledger-Enquirer New Zealand's government said Friday, March 31, 2017, the partial collapse of a modern office building's interior floors during the earthquake November 2016 was unacceptable and could have killed people. Minister for Building and Construction Nick ... CentrePort warned of 'critical issue' in Statistics House in 2013 | Stuff ...The Dominion Post CentrePort warned of 'critical issue' in Statistics House in 2013Stuff.co.nz all 22 news articles »

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New Zealand to review building design standards after quake - Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

New Beltline loft office building leasing up, more deals in the works Atlanta Business Chronicle Dick's Sporting Goods is putting one of its key technology divisions at a new office building along the Atlanta Beltline. Dick's (NYSE: DKS) will lease a little more than 30,000 square feet at The Willoughby, a mid-rise project overlooking the Eastside ... and more »

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New Beltline loft office building leasing up, more deals in the works - Atlanta Business Chronicle

$1.3Billion Approved in 201617 Is First Step in Administrations Larger Strategy. In adopting the 201617 budget package, the Legislature established the State Project Infrastructure Fund (SPIF), which is continuously appropriated for state projects. The Legislature further provided $1.3billion to the SPIF over two years for three specific state office building construction projects in Sacramento. These projects reflect the first step of the administrations larger regional strategy to construct or renovate a total of 11state office buildings in the Sacramento area over the next ten years. We expect that in the coming years the administration will come forward with more than $1billion in additional funding requests to continue to carry out this strategy.

Administrations Approach to Strategy Raises Some Specific Concerns.Assessing the condition of the states office buildings and taking a regional approach to maintaining these assets makes sense and is consistent with legislative direction. However, we identify some specific areas of concern for the Legislature as it faces decisions about (1)whether to move forward with additional state building projects and (2)how best to oversee the projects funded with the $1.3billion provided in 201617. Specifically, we find the following:

Recommend Legislature Provide Clear Direction to Administration on Strategy.We recommend that the Legislature take the following actions to address the above concerns:

We believe these recommendations would help ensure that the state has the information it needs to move forward with the best available strategy for addressing its buildings in the Sacramento area and that any funds provided are spent with adequate legislative oversight and accountability.

In adopting the 201617 budget package, the Legislature established the State Project Infrastructure Fund(SPIF) and provided $1.3billion over two years for three specific state office building projects in the Sacramento area. These projects reflect the first step of the administrations larger regional strategy to expand and improve state office buildings in the Sacramento area over the next ten years. In the coming years, the Legislature will be presented with important decisions related to this strategy. Specifically, the Legislature will have to determine whether to proceed with the additional projects envisioned in the administrations regional strategy. Additionally, the Legislature will have to decide how to best oversee the projects funded with the $1.3billion provided in 201617.

This report is intended to help guide the Legislature as it makes these decisions. We begin by providing background information on Sacramento state office buildings and summarizing the actions taken in the 201617 budget process. Next, we assess the administrations regional strategy for state office buildings in the Sacramento area. Finally, we provide recommendations to assist the Legislature as it faces key decision points related to the administrations strategy.

The state, through the Department of General Services (DGS), owns and maintains 58general purpose office buildings across the state. Thirtyfour of these buildingstotaling over 8million square feetare in the Sacramento area. These Sacramento area buildings are valued at over $4billion and house 35 state departments and agencies, such as the Department of Water Resources and the Franchise Tax Board. The state also leases about 8million square feet of general purpose office space in the Sacramento area. (We note that some state departments other than DGS operate office space for more specific purposes. For example, the Department of Motor Vehicles operates field offices.)

DGS Directed to Perform Sacramento Office Planning Effort. As part of the 201415 budget, the administration proposed and the Legislature approved a total of $2.5million for DGS to complete a longrange planning study (LongRange Study) of stateowned general purpose office space in the Sacramento area. The LongRange Study was to include (1)an update of an earlier planning study identifying potential office space development opportunities in Sacramento (Office Planning Study); (2)condition assessments of all state office buildings in the Sacramento area (Sacramento Assessment Report); (3)a plan for sequencing the renovation or replacement of state office buildings in Sacramento (Sequencing Plan); and (4)a funding plan for undertaking these projects, including project cost estimates and an economic analysis (Funding Plan).

Chapter451 of 2014 (AB 1656, Dickinson) required that DGS complete this LongRange Study by July 1, 2015, as well as provided direction on the contents of the study and how it was to be used by DGS. First, the legislation specified that the study should guide the states actions on state buildings over the next 25 years. Second, it required that DGS use the information in the LongRange Study as the basis for developing detailed cost and scope information to be considered in future budget proposals. Finally, it directed DGS to issue requests for proposals to address the renovation and replacement needs of Sacramento office buildings, starting with the three buildings with the most significant and immediate facility needs.

Office Planning Study Identified Potential Office Development Sites. In 2015, DGS completed the Office Planning Study component of the LongRange Study, which identified and ranked 41 potential sites in Sacramento for future development over the next 40 years based on an evaluation of the feasibility of developing the sites. Using criteria such as size, ownership (stateowned versus privately owned), and access to transportation, the evaluation rated the seven best sites as superior and nine additional sites as good. As shown in Figure1, some of these sites are stateowned and some are privately owned. Additionally, the development time frames for these sites vary, with some potentially ready for development within five yearssuch as Downtown Block 204 (currently occupied by a parking lot and the historic Heilbron House)and others available for development within six to ten yearssuch as the State Printing Plant site. Many of these sites contain existing buildings that would have to be demolished or moved to accommodate new development.

Figure 1

Potential Superior and Good Development Sites Identified in Sacramento Office Planning Study

Site

Ownership

Development Time Frame (Years)

Location

Superior

Bonderson Building site

State

05

Downtown Sacramento

CalPERS site

State

05

Downtown Sacramento

Downtown Block 275

State

05

Downtown Sacramento

Downtown Blocks 203 and 204

State

05

Downtown Sacramento

Food and Agriculture Annex site

State

05

Downtown Sacramento

Franchise Tax Board site

State

05

County (near Rancho Cordova)

Richards Boulevard area

Private

05

Railyards area/River District

Good

Resources Building site

State

610

Downtown Sacramento

State Printing Plant site

State

610

Railyards area/River District

Downtown Core

Private

05

Downtown Sacramento

Bradshaw Landing

Private

05

County (near Rancho Cordova)

Granite Park

Private

05

Granite Regional Park area (near Tahoe Park)

Railyards area

Private

05

Railyards area/River District

Southport Business Park

Private

05

West Sacramento

West Capitol Downtown

Private

05

West Sacramento

Pioneer Bluff area

Private

610

West Sacramento

Sacramento Assessment Report Identified Buildings With Highest Needs. In July 2015, DGS released the Sacramento Assessment Report portion of the LongRange Study. The report evaluated 29stateowned office buildings in Sacramento. (The report excluded a few buildings that were vacant or that DGS did not consider to be typical office space, such as the State Capitol Annex.)

Overall, the Sacramento Assessment Report noted that all of the buildings that were evaluated were in a safe, serviceable, and functioning condition. The report developed a Facility Condition Index (FCI) score for each building, which compared the estimated costs of repairing versus replacing the building. (A high FCI score means that a buildings repair costs are relatively high compared to cost of replacement.) Based on this analysis, the report ranked the 29buildings, identifying 9 in poor condition, 4 in fair condition, and 16 in good condition, as shown in Figure2. The report ranked the Resources Building, Personnel Building, and Bonderson Building as those in most critical need of renovation or replacement and recommended prioritizing the needs of these buildings over other buildings, consistent with the direction provided in Chapter451. The report also found that all of the buildings that were evaluated had FCIs well below 65, which is the industry standard for replacement. This suggests that all of the buildings that were evaluated are better candidates for repair rather than replacement. (As we discuss later, in September 2016 the administration completed assessments of the condition of general purpose office buildings in other parts of the state besides Sacramento.)

201617 Budget Package Included $1.3Billion Over Two Years. The 201617 budget package provided $1billion from the General Fund in 201617 and $300million in 201718 to be deposited into a new fund, the SPIF. This funding is to be used for three buildings in the Sacramento area: a new building at the current Food and Agriculture Annex site on O Street (O Street Building), a new Resources Building at a different site, and either replacement or renovation of the State Capitol Annex. (Throughout this report, we refer to these three projects as the three initial projects.)

SPIF Funds Are Continuously Appropriated. In adopting the 201617 budget package, the Legislature passed Chapter31 of 2016 (SB836, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), which governs the use of the SPIF. Chapter31 specifies that monies in the SPIF are continuously appropriated. It also authorizes the administration to establish and move forward with projects without having to receive legislative approval through the traditional state budget process, as is typically required for capital outlay projects. (Please see the nearby box, for a detailed description of the traditional state budget process for capital outlay projects.)

Under the traditional state budget process, the administration proposes individual capital outlay projects as part of the Governors proposed budget for the coming fiscal year. These capital outlay budget change proposals generally include important details on the proposed projectssuch as the project scope, construction timeline, costs by project phase, funding sources, delivery method, and a narrative justification. They also include an analysis of alternatives and an explanation of why the alternatives were rejected in favor of the proposed project.

Typically, the administration submits proposals prior to being able to initiate certain design and construction phases of a project. As part of its review of these proposals, the Legislature assesses if projects are consistent with its funding priorities and the longterm programmatic needs of the relevant department.

After an individual capital outlay project is approved, the Legislature maintains oversight of certain changes related to the project. Specifically, if the scope of a project changes substantively or if the projects costs increase by more than 20percent, the administration is generally required to seek legislative approval through the traditional budget process before being able to proceed. (If the projects scope changes minimally or its costs increase by between 10percent and 20percent, the typical process requires the administration to notify the Joint Legislative Budget Committee.) If the Legislature has concerns about the administrations proposed changes, the Legislature has the opportunity to reject them or to direct the administration to make changes to address the concerns.

Certain Notifications Required for Funded Projects. Chapter31 requires the administration to provide the Legislature with quarterly reports and notifications in order to establish and move forward with SPIFfunded projects. Figure3 summarizes the required notifications. For example, at least 20 days before spending SPIF funds on project planning activities, the administration must provide the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) with a notice identifying the purpose of the planning activity and its estimated costs. In September 2016, the administration provided the Legislature with the first notification through this processa 20day notification regarding its intent to spend $4.9million on the development of the cost, scope, and delivery method for the O Street Building and the new Resources Building. The notification review periods for the Legislature range from 20to 60 days depending on the project and activity. We note that, because of its unique characteristics, Chapter31 created a separate process for the State Capitol Annex as described in the nearby box. As such, when we discuss state office buildings in this report, we do not include the State Capitol Annex unless otherwise specified.

Figure 3

Required Notifications for State Projects Funded Through the State Project Infrastructure Funda

Activity

Contents of Required Notice

Minimum Number of Days of Advanced Notification

Expenditure of funds on planning activities

Purpose of planning activity and estimates of costs

20

Establishment of scope, cost, and delivery method

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The Administrations Sacramento Office Building ...

NEENAH, Wis. (WBAY-TV) Neenah is clearing the way for parking as the Gateway Office Building nears its opening.

The city owns, bought or is buying 15 properties that encompasses homes and businesses near Gateway to make them parking surfaces.

The properties and the under-construction gateway office building are all on the west side of downtown Neenah.

The four story Gateway Office Building is almost complete.

The goal is for it to be complete by June 1st.

Then 275-300 Plexus employees will settle in as the engineering firm is moving its design center into the building.

"It's going to work out well and it's going to bring a lot of people downtown, on the flip side, it puts pressures on the city to provide more parking," said Neenah Mayor Dean Kaufert.

That's why the city of Neenah asked business and home owners around the building if they wanted to sell.

So far, the city has bought around 12 properties that will become parking lots.

It's budgeted $900,000 to acquire property around the Gateway Building.

The owner of Cranked Bike Studio across the street from Gateway, Stephen Pratt, says the building he rents hasn't been sold but he thinks the new development will help business in the area.

"I think it's going to bring more dollars to the downtown between lunches dinners and the parking is progress, I understand, as much as I like things old," said Pratt

Neenah believes the parking lots can lead to more development in the future.

"This is the entrance to our downtown, as you come over the Main Street overpass this is the first thing you see this site so we really see this at some point in the future as future redevelopment for office, commercial, residential, as really that welcome to downtown Neenah," said Brad Schmidt, Neenah Community Development Deputy Director.

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Neenah buying properties to make parking lots near Gateway Office Buidling - WBAY

Atlantic Countys efforts to build an aviation industry and create high-paying technology jobs got the boost of a decade this month.

The Atlantic County Improvement Authority last week approved a $17.2 million contract for construction of the first building at the Stockton Aviation Research and Technology Park, a concept that struggled to get off the ground since plans were first announced in 2005.

The work, which could begin next month, is hailed by officials and politicians as a way to diversify a largely casino-dependent economy that has struggled as casinos closed and gambling spread to neighboring states.

Im absolutely thrilled, said U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-2nd, praising county officials, the Federal Aviation Administration, Stockton University and everyone involved with the project. Unfortunately, the initial stages of this got tangled up with legal battles and bumps in the road, but this is now a reality.

LoBiondo helped secure more than $3 million in federal grants related to the project. He also helped convince officials from the FAA to lease 55 acres of land adjacent to the William J. Hughes Technical Center as a site for the park.

Originally called the NextGen Aviation Research & Technology Park, the project was plagued by legal issues and alleged fiscal mismanagement.

The effort to build the park was rekindled in the past few years by Stockton University and the county.

Construction of the first building, which is expected to be complete by next spring, is one phase of the project.

But the next phase will be critical finding tenants.

Joe Sheairs, executive director of SARTP, said there has been a lot of interest for years from multibillion-dollar companies because of the parks unique relationship with the FAA.

The problem, however, was the county had nothing but an idea to sell.

We didnt have a building until Friday, Sheairs said. People on the industry side of this who were interested kept saying, show me.

Now, Sheairs is talking to four major companies that are inquiring about leasing space in the building, he said. Potential tenants must use the space for aviation research.

He declined to name the companies because nothing has been signed, he said.

When completed, the three-story building will feature 60,000 square feet of office space, a Federal Aviation Administration laboratory, classrooms, member laboratories and a rooftop lounge.

The building can be modified by any tenant that leases space there. All tenants will have to be approved by the FAA because the building is on FAA land.

The FAA also will be a tenant and occupy 5,000 square feet of laboratory space and 2,000 square feet of office space at the building.

Right now, the first lab is being designed generically with typical lab features such as raised floors, upgraded electrical panels, space for computers and racks that hold them, said Rick Breitenfeldt, a spokesman at the tech center. Since the ground has yet to be broken, modifications can still be made depending on what (or) who exactly occupies that space.

The building will be one of seven, multi-story buildings with more than 400,000 total square feet of research and development space at the park.

All the buildings will include high-speed connectivity to FAA laboratories, data and systems. The campus-like setting is designed to promote collaboration among business, academia and all major research arms of the federal government, according to a statement from the county.

There are no renderings or projected completion dates for the other six buildings.

The first building will be constructed by Hessert Construction Group LLC, of Marlton, Burlington County.

Hessert has completed projects at Stockton, Rutgers University, the Philadelphia Zoo and the Adventure Aquarium in Camden, among others.

As soon as we saw this, we knew it was a project we wanted, said Vic Lombardi, director of operations at Hessert. Were really excited to get started.

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Construction on tech park could begin next month, officials looking for tenants - Press of Atlantic City