Author: BEX Staff

By Associated Builders and Contractors Associated Builders and Contractors has reported its Construction Backlog Indicator rebounded modestly to 7.3 months in December, an increase of 0.1 months from November’s reading, according to an ABC member survey conducted from December 18th to January 5th. Backlog is 1.5 months lower than in December 2019. ABC’s Construction Confidence Index readings for sales, profit margins and staffing levels increased in December. The sales index climbed above the threshold of 50, indicating contractors expect to grow sales over the next six months. The index reading for profit margins remained below that threshold. The staffing level…

By Colliers International Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has clearly arrived in Phoenix office market statistics for fourth quarter 2020. The city had its first quarter of negative net absorption in more than eight years. Yet, the outlook is optimistic for a swift recovery in 2021 and 2022 as companies can safely bring employees back to work for much-needed interaction and career development. The Greater Phoenix marketplace posted 143.4KSF of negative net absorption during the final three months of 2020. This followed an astonishing run of 34 consecutive quarters of positive net absorption. This negative net absorption is directly attributed…

Groundbreakings 1. PVB Fabrications, Inc. (PVB) broke ground last week to prepare for its headquarters expansion at 11871 N. Breakers Road Marana. Initially, the new facilities will include a 15.4KSF administrative office building plus a separate 35KSF fabrication/production facility. A future phase of construction will include a second 35KSF fabrication/production facility providing 70KSF of fabrication/production space. Phase one of the new headquarters is scheduled to be complete by October 2021. Partners include the Arizona Commerce Authority, the Town of Marana, the Pima Community College and the Small Business Development Center, PICOR, Randel Jacob Design Group, PLLC, Stewart Title, Eric Nadler,…

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX  The General Services Administration (GSA) recently issued two Sources Sought notices for the San Luis I Land Port of Entry Expansion and Modernization project.  The sources sought notices are for architectural, engineering, construction, and other related services as well as construction management services. The GSA is looking specifically for small business firms interested in providing those services.  The San Luis I Land Port of Entry, located on 12.1 acres at the intersection of Highway 95 and the International Border with Mexico in San Luis, “is the second busiest non-commercial land port of entry in Arizona and processes more than 3 million…

Budget, Policy & Stimulus News Who’s First in Line for New PPP Loans? No launch date has been set by the Small Business Administration for when it will start accepting new applications for Paycheck Protection Program loans, but community financial institutions – those serving minorities, veterans, women and underserved geographic areas – will be the priority in the initial days of the rollout. Advocates had lobbied for these businesses to receive early access, as many of them had missed out in the first round. (Source) Mesa Wonders What’s Next After CARES Funding Ends Federal funding that had provided relief for residents under the Mesa CARES program expired at…

The recently released “Fourth Quarter 2020 North America Quarterly Construction Cost Report” from Rider Levett Bucknall showed increases in 11 of the 12 U.S. markets. From October, 2019 to October, 2020 Los Angeles saw the greatest annual percent change in its Comparative Cost Index with 4.41 percent. Chicago was the only leading market to decrease, dropping -1.29 percent. Phoenix’s CCI rose 1.43 percent. (Source) 

By Associated Builders and Contractors  The construction industry added 51,000 net new jobs in December, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. During the last eight months, the industry has added 857,000 jobs, recovering 79.1 percent of the jobs lost during the earlier stages of the pandemic.  Nonresidential construction employment added 29,000 net jobs in December. Nonresidential building was the only subsegment that experienced a net loss in jobs, contracting by 4,300 positions. Nonresidential specialty trade contractors added 18,300 jobs for the month, while heavy and civil engineering added 15,000.  The construction unemployment rate rose…

Giving Back  1. Each year, the WTS Metropolitan Phoenix Chapter offers seven scholarships to assist qualified candidates aspiring to transportation careers. The scholarships are:   The AzTA Transit Planning Scholarship  The Helene M. Overly/Esther Kmetty Scholarship  Sharon D. Banks Memorial Undergraduate Scholarship  Molitoris Leadership Fund for Undergraduates  Support Sky Harbor Coalition Scholarship  Friends of Transit Scholarship  Returning Student Scholarship  2. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the PICOR Charitable Foundation was unable to come together in a traditional way to stage its 26th annual Pancake Feed in Reid Park; however, with help from their donors and partners, they still raised more than $80K for Tucson’s youth programs.  Awards & Accolades  3. GLHN Architects & Engineers, Inc. announced…

Sales Transactions  1. TruAmerica Multifamily acquired Pointe at South Mountain Apartments, a 38-building, 364-unit multifamily complex at 8809 S. Pointe Parkway, Phoenix, for $80M, from ConAm Group of Companies. CBRE Capital Markets arranged $54.997M in new Freddie Mac debt for the deal.  2. Ashton Woods teamed up with Lennar Corp. and Taylor Morrison Home Corp. and purchased a 328-acre parcel in Peoria for $72.6M, in an auction against PulteGroup Inc., Maracay Homes and Toll Brothers Inc. Representing the winning bidders was the Nathan & Associates Inc. team of Nate Nathan, Dave Mullard, Daniel Baldwin, Ryan Duncan and Casey Christensen.  3. Millburn & Company acquired Allegro at Foothills Gateway, an 18-building, 264-unit apartment complex at 4411 E. Chandler Boulevard, Ahwatukee, for $65.1M,…

By Rebekah Morris for AZBEX  Next week the BEX research team will present detailed market analytics at the fourth annual Construction Forecast Event. The topic will be an exclusive and deep analysis of the next three years of the Arizona construction market. Below is a sneak peek of what types of data and analysis will be presented:  Top Owners, Architects, and Contractors in 2020 – how will they change in the coming years?  The most popular section of the Construction Forecast Event every year is the name-dropping; who will be the most active players in each given sector? Now that we have done this research analysis four years running, we…