Federal Spending 10/14/2009 A Snapshot of Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects By Tom Ichniowski As the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act reaches the eight-month mark, the construction industry is seeing a decidedly mixed picture. The $787-billion stimulus package’s estimated $130 billion of construction money is flowing out through many federal and nonfederal agency channels, but those agencies are moving their ARRA money out at varying rates on diverse projects across the U.S. See profiles of 24 projects below. Click here for full introduction » TRANSPORTATION Osage River Bridge The new $8.5-million bridge being built over the Osage River near Tuscumbia,
An infusion of $16 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will enable the rural California city of Live Oak’s wastewater treatment plant to avoid tens of thousands of dollars in fines and meet state wastewater quality standards by 2011. Live Oak, Calif. Photo: ECO:LOGIC Site prep begins under a construction contract that came in $1 million below earlier bids. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects A 2007 California Water Resources Control Board order mandated upgrading the 1.4-million-gallon-per-day plant to meet standards for disinfection and metals, including aluminum and copper. “We were facing
“Grateful.” That was the reaction of Lester Robinson, chief executive officer for the Wayne County Airport Authority, upon receiving news this May of $15 million in stimulus funds for a crucial rehabilitation of a crosswinds runway in Detroit. Detroit, Mich. Photo: WCAA Reconstruction of crosswinds runway in Detroit will now be complete this year. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects Five months later, Ajax Paving Industries Inc., Troy, Mich., is about 80% complete on the $34-million reconstruction of a 8,700-ft-long runway at Detroit Metro Airport. “The stimulus allowed us to accelerate construction to complete
Construction will have to wait. For now, a $2.7-million stimulus award to a Michigan power cooperative will stimulate nothing more than the coop’s chance to receive more stimulus money for a possible carbon-capture and -storage project at a coal-fired powerplant not yet built. Cadillac, Mich. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects There is still a “great deal of work to be done” before the co-op can answer questions about what the carbon-capture project would entail and what its impact will be, says Nancy Tanner, spokeswoman for Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative Inc., Cadillac, Mich. Wolverine
The new $8.5-million bridge being built over the Osage River near Tuscumbia, Mo., was the country’s first stimulus-financed project to get under way after President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Feb. 17. The new bridge will take the place of a rickety steel-truss bridge that has stood since 1933. Tuscumbia, Mo. Photo: MODOT New Tuscumbia bridge spanning the Osage River is on schedule for October 2010 completion. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects In the months before the ARRA bill was enacted, the Missouri Dept. of Transportation laid the groundwork
Taking advantage of newly granted borrowing authority, the Western Area Power Administration has dusted off plans for a U.S.-Canada intertie and is close to an agreement with a private developer to take a stake in a $213-million project to wheel up to 300 MW between Montana and Alberta. Power is to be generated from wind farms, some still to be constructed, in and around Cut Bank, Mont. Great Falls, Mont. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects WAPA moved quickly to find money and a developer by authority granted under Section 402 of the American
New Jersey Dept. of Transportation recently leveraged $70 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to proceed with the second phase of a major replacement project on the Route 52 causeway near Atlantic City, improving a key link to the southern Jersey shore. Traffic volume tops 40,000 vehicles daily in summer, NJDOT says. Ocean City, N.J. Photo: NJDOT Causeway bridges are being replaced to handle heavy shore traffic. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects Agency spokesman Tim Greeley says the $251-million project will create 500 new construction jobs throughout its three-year duration. There
Before You Can Say, “Let there be light,” you first have to say, “Let there be concrete and steel.” At least that is the way the process works with some of the scientific research at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y., where $150 million of stimulus funding is speeding up parts of a big new research laboratory. Upton, N.Y. Photo: Brookhaven National Laboratory Ring-shaped Lab in Upton, N.Y., used stimulus money to speed contractors held back by annual funding cycles, and parts, but not all, of the project have been moved up for earlier completion. Photo: Brookhaven National Laboratory
Though housing development across San Francisco has slowed to a crawl during the recession, a plan to build a 196-unit mixed-use complex on the central waterfront is off the ground because of $1.7 million in federal stimulus funds. San Francisco, California Photo: Martin Building Co. Repurposed warehouses will abut newly constructed apartments. Related Links: Stimulus: A Snapshot of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects Funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will cover the first phase of the Potrero Launch project, which involves soil testing prior to brownfield cleanup on a 1.25-acre site in a heavy industrial zone near
As the American Recovery and Rein-vestment Act reaches the eight-month mark, the construction industry is seeing a decidedly mixed picture. The $787-billion stimulus package’s estimated $130 billion of construction money is flowing out through many federal and nonfederal agency channels, but those agencies are moving their ARRA money out at varying rates on diverse projects across the U.S. Some are shown on the following pages. Related Links: Stimulus: Complete Listing of Top Shovel-, Wrench- and Pencil-Ready Projects: Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Oct. 1 that the Federal Highway Administration had obligated 72% of
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