Author: BEX Staff

By Associated Builders and Contractors Associated Builders and Contractors issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Labor issuing a final rule, Updating the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Regulations, which will make drastic revisions to the Davis-Bacon Act and Related Acts regulations that apply to federal and federally assisted construction projects funded by taxpayers. “This is yet another Biden administration handout to organized labor on the backs of taxpayers, small businesses and the free market,” said ABC VP, Labor and State Affairs Ben Brubeck. “Unfortunately, the DOL’s final rule disregards the feedback of ABC contractors, construction industry…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX In an Aug. 8 opinion column in Bisnow entitled “The Construction Industry Needs Undocumented Workers. So Why Is Nothing Being Done To Help Them?” freelance writer Patrick Sisson argues that undocumented labor is vital to addressing the U.S. construction industry’s chronic and ongoing labor shortage and that much more needs to be done to provide those workers with opportunities to work legally and safely. We have decided to provide a summary of Sisson’s piece in today’s issue because, while it is a matter of increasing importance to the industry, it is also rarely reported or…

Awards & Accolades 1. The APWA Arizona Chapter has released the list of Project of the Year winners in the APWA Arizona Chapter 2023 Awards. Small Cities/Rural Communities Transportation Category Project Name: Quail Crossing Boulevard Extension Managing Agency: Town of Sahuarita Primary Consultant: Psomas Primary Contractor: The Ashton Company, Inc. Environmental Category—Less Than $5M Project Name: Zone 1 Water Transmission Main CMAR Managing Agency: Town of Gilbert Primary Consultant: Black & Veatch Primary Contractor: Achen-Gardner Construction Environmental Category—$5M to $25M Project Name: Chandler Heights Utility Relocations CMAR Managing Agency: City of Chandler Primary Consultant: Wilson Engineers Primary Contractor: Achen-Gardner Construction…

The City of Coolidge is starting discussions with Logan Simpson Design—its on-call design service—to begin developing a regional park master plan. Coolidge officials have been discussing the idea of a regional park on an approximately 70-acre site at Coolidge Avenue and Skousen Road for several months. The City intends to develop a master plan and then build the park in phases as funding permits. Initial components could include walking and jogging trails and a dog park, as they are fairly inexpensive to develop. Future amenities could include a splash pad, playground, shade ramadas, sports fields, and courts for sand volleyball,…

The compromise measure to put a renewal of the Maricopa County Proposition 400 half-cent transportation sales tax before voters for approval excludes funding for major additions to the Valley transit system. This leaves the planned $400M Mesa extension of the Tempe Streetcar system in limbo. Leaders in Mesa and Tempe say they have not given up moving forward with the project and are considering new funding options. Under the previous Proposition 400 plan, Mesa and Tempe would have received $190M for the project and another $113M of outside matching funds. The two cities joined with project owner Valley Metro in…

By Roland Murphy for AZBEX Simpatico Communities is proposing Pinyon Crest—a new 56.5-gross-acre mixed-use community east of Highway 87 and Tyler Parkway in Payson. The developer has requested a rezoning from C-2 General Commercial and R1-10-MH Single-family and Manufactured Housing to Planned Area Development for the vacant site, which is surrounded by existing land uses consisting of vacant land, church uses and single- and multifamily residential. Because the 2014-2024 Payson General Plan Land Use Map designates the site for commercial and medium-density residential, no General Plan amendment will be required. The Payson Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled to hear…

Despite assertions by Northern Arizona Healthcare that a citizen group opposed to the development of its planned hospital and wellness village used incomplete and inaccurate information to solicit signatures for a referendum on the project zoning in violation of state law, Coconino County Superior Court Judge Brent Harris ruled last week to allow the referendum to proceed. After Flagstaff City Council approved the necessary rezoning for the project, opposition group Flagstaff Community First circulated a petition to put the zoning on the ballot for voter approval. The group reportedly secured more than 2,000 more signatures beyond than the required minimum,…

By BEX Staff for AZBEX The City of Peoria’s recently approved $950M budget includes more than $170M for water infrastructure, according to news reports, which City officials say demonstrates Peoria’s commitment to meeting residents’ needs now and in the future. The largest infrastructure project on the budget is $62M for the CAP/LPP Intersection Wellfield and Pipeline and Zone 6E Reservoir & Booster Pump Station, which will provide new potable water wells, water lines and a pumping station near the Central Arizona Project Canal and Lake Pleasant Parkway to ensure a redundant water supply in north Peoria. The state is contributing…

Awards & Accolades 1. The Town of Sahuarita’s Beth Abramovitz has been named Professional Manager of the Year – Public Right of Way in the APWA Arizona Chapter 2023 Awards. Company News 2. As it celebrates its 40th anniversary, Sigma Contracting, Inc., continues to show its diversity in building and renovating projects around Arizona and the Southwest. Sigma Contracting was founded in 1983 and is licensed in nine Southwestern states. For 40 years, Sigma has been the turnkey contractor or project manager for more than 1,000 construction projects including hospitals, medical office buildings, multifamily, schools, public venues, retail, industrial, banks,…

Sales Transactions 1. Steven Underwood and Chad Tiedeman with Phoenix Commercial Advisors represented the seller in the $31.3M sale of Plaza32, a 15.9-acre shopping center at Bell Road and 32nd Street in Phoenix. The parties were not disclosed. 2. Dalan Management has paid $28M for the 139-unit Country Gables apartment community in Glendale. Seller Western Wealth Capital was represented by Cliff David and Steve Gebing of Institutional Property Advisors, a division of Marcus & Millichap, who also procured the buyer. Acquisition financing was arranged by IPA Capital Markets’ Brian Eisendrath, Cameron Chalfant, Jake Vitta and Tyler Johnson. 3. CBRE has…