Five Construction Trends to Watch for California in 2014

Steel Suspends Berkeley Art Deco Building in Mid Air — In the year ahead, California may build its first stretch of high-speed rail track. Or it may be the year that the final nail gets driven into the $68-billion project's coffin due to unfavorable courtroom rulings and declining public support.

Image courtesy of California High-Speed Rail Authority

Next on the docket is Sacramento's $448-million Entertainment and Sports Center, the planned home for the Kings National Basketball Association team. Turner Construction expects to break ground this summer and complete the facility in 2016.

The Kings unveiled the arena's design by AECOM on Jan. 28. It includes a 50-ft-tall, 150-ft-long retractable grand entrance area that can open up the arena to outdoor public space. Chris Granger, Kings president and chief operating officer, calls the roof "a big move that helps us blur the line between who can enjoy the game and how they will enjoy it."

The arena plan is not conflict-free. Opponents gathered enough signatures to put the public funding up to a vote. That move failed last month when the Sacramento city clerk rejected the initiative due to errors and deficiencies in the filing. On Jan. 29, arena opponents filed a lawsuit to reverse the city clerk's decision.

Likewise, the NBA's Golden State Warriors in San Francisco are facing fierce opposition to the waterfront site selected for a $1-billion NBA arena in San Francisco. The team had hoped to have it open for the 2017 season.

Downtown Revival

Billions of investment dollars are pouring into downtown Los Angeles and San Francisco

Foundations are under construction for two high-rises that will be the West Coast's two tallest towers. This month, workers plan to continuously cast 20,000 cu yd of foundation concrete for Korean Air's $1-billion Wilshire Grand development in downtown Los Angeles. Work is also under way on foundations for the 1,070-ft-tall Transbay Tower in San Francisco.

But developers are just getting started. AECOM Capital and Mack Urban, both in Los Angeles, are planning a multitower complex with apartments or condos near the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. AECOM subsidiary Tishman Construction Corp. expects to break ground later this year. And in January, the Los Angeles County board of supervisors approved architect Frank Gehry's design for a $750-million mixed-use complex on Grand Avenue, across the street from the Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Blair leads day-to-day operations of the ENR editorial team to ensure brand quality and further best practices. He spearheads ENR's various competitions, including Best Projects and the Award of Excellence, and organizes editorial content at events including the Top Young Professionals conference. A Jesse H. Neal, Construction Media Alliance and AZBEES-award-winning writer and videographer, Blair frequently contributes to ENR’s burgeoning video channel with project tour videos and interviews with industry leaders. He is also a frequent speaker and moderator on topics such as diversity and inclusion, design and jobsite technology, construction means and methods and marketing.