Author: BEX Staff

By Roland Murphy for Arizona Builder’s Exchange While backlogs and revenue expectations for U.S. contractors remain strong, a recent report shows the ongoing labor shortage is now affecting 90 percent of contractors across the country. The Q2 2018 Commercial Construction Index, produced and released by USG Corporation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, reports more than half of contractors plan/hope to hire within the next six months but 90 percent are having difficulty locating and attracting skilled labor. Additionally, fully half report concerns about available workers’ skill levels. “Contractors will soon enter their busiest months of the year, and while…

Awards & Accolades 1. Rose Law Group has been honored as a top company to work for in Arizona. The firm was named one of AZCentral’s 2018 Best Companies to Work for in Arizona. 2. Clear Title Agency of Arizona celebrated its 10th year of operation in 2017 and has kicked off its next decade being named among the 2018 Top Companies to Work for in Arizona sponsored by AZCentral. 3. Leroy Breinholt of Commercial Properties Inc. has been honored by ASU in the Sun Devil 100 awards program as #53 of the 100 entrepreneurial & innovative alumni leaders of…

Groundbreakings 1. Work kicked off with a Wall Bashing Ceremony for the $90/230KSF ASU Hayden Library Reinvention Project. Architect is Ayers Saint Gross, and Holder Construction Company is the GC. 2. LGE Design Build has begun construction in Goodyear for a 44.7KSF Adelante Healthcare facility scheduled to open August 2018. The Goodyear site is the 10th location for Adelante Healthcare, a nonprofit provider of community-focused health services, and the first location in Arizona constructed from the ground up on an existing hospital campus to be. Progress Reports 3. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has $120M on its construction plate this summer, with additional building…

Banner Health will soon begin construction on a new, comprehensive medical center in the Southeast Valley. While Banner Health is a leading health care provider in the broader Southeast Valley, this will be the first Chandler hospital for the non-profit health care system. The four-story, 240KSF hospital will be located on the southeast corner of Alma School Road and Loop 202 Santan Freeway. It will be adjacent to the existing Banner Health Center in Chandler, and will help fulfill the healthcare needs of area residents, including those who reside in Ahwatukee, Chandler and Gilbert. The Southeast Valley is one of…

By Tasha Anderson for Arizona Builder’s Exchange Metro Phoenix is seeing an influx of office and industrial space, and tenant demand for ready and available space is allowing for more opportunity in the market. According to a recent study released by CBRE Group, Inc. and referenced by Phoenix Business Journal, Chandler and Tempe alone “compose 83 percent (2.5MSF) of the office space under construction throughout the Valley, with 3.1MSF being built in total throughout metro Phoenix.” This was the topic of discussion on Thursday as a sold-out crowd gathered at the DoubleTree by Hilton for the latest AZBEX Leading Market…

Sales Transactions 1. Sunbelt Land Holdings LP was the successful bidder on just over 93 acres of land located South and West of the SW corner of 19th Ave. & Bell. 2. HFF announced $17.3M in financing for Spring Meadow, a 271-unit apartment community in Glendale. The HFF team worked on behalf of Western Wealth Capital, which acquired the property on behalf of the borrower, an MDC Realty Advisors USA, Inc.-managed fund, to secure the five-year, floating-rate loan through a national bank. 3. Cushman & Wakefield completed the sale of Kinsey Ridge, located at 1718 N. Fort Valley Road in…

By Rebekah Morris for Arizona Builder’s Exchange Last month the Red for Ed budget bill caught the local building industry completely off-guard when it included a last-minute amendment that has far-reaching impacts on public K12 procurements. (AZBEX, May 8th) This week I had the opportunity to sit down with the Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives, JD Mesnard to discuss the impacts and origins of the amendment. He explained that the amendment, and the legislative arm in general, are very reactionary bodies, stating “There is a growing sentiment among legislators that the egregious procurement violations by Scottsdale (Unified School…

By Roland Murphy for Arizona Builder’s Exchange Three recent reports show the economy is buzzing right along, but more frequent concerns are being expressed. The first, a Nelson J. Schwartz article published in the New York Times, pointed out the economy added 223,000 jobs in May – 33,000 more than experts had expected – to land at an employment of 3.8 percent, the lowest it has been since April, 2000. “It was the 92nd consecutive month of job creation,” Schwartz wrote. “Most economists expect the momentum to continue, but a deeper drop in the unemployment rate or a big bump…

Company News CBRE Group, Inc. launched Spacer, a free workplace planning product to help companies apply best-in-class workplace trends to their office layout. Targeting companies with 15-300 employees, the technology recommends customized office workspace specifications designed to help organizations enhance their company culture, drive productivity and creativity and attract and retain the best talent. 2. Earthworks Environmental LLC plans to expand its operations to more than 16 states from the Southwest to the Midwest to the Mid-Atlantic. To brace for the growth, Travis Fern has been promoted to Director of Compliance and Brendan Haugh to Director of Training and development. Recently, Earthworks…

Groundbreakings Construction is kicking off on two major parks projects in Gilbert. The town held its groundbreaking ceremony for the 272-acre Gilbert Regional Park on May 29 and will hold another groundbreaking for Rittenhouse District Park, located on the east side of Power and Pecos Roads, on June 13. Both parks are set to open in 2019. Progress Reports 2. On Thursday, June 7, ADOT crews began placing 45,000-pound girders on bridge piers that will form the deck of the SR 87 bridge. The work is part of a project to create a new interchange at Interstate 10 and State…