Extell isn’t suddenly ramping up activity. The developer recently completed the Lucida, a 20-story, 500,000-sq-ft condominium building that rose from brownfield lots on the Upper East Side. In the last few years, the firm has opened four towers in the massive Riverside South residential development along the West Side Highway. It also has refurbished various older buildings across the city into luxury residences.

More projects are on the horizon for Extell, including an additional five towers adjoining Riverside South that the New York City Council approved in December. The 3.1-million-sq-ft Riverside Center will rise on undeveloped land between West End Avenue and Riverside Boulevard between West 59th and 61st Streets, and will feature 2,500 residential units, a 100,000-sq-ft public school, 1,500 parking spaces, 120,000 sq ft of retail space and 100,000 sq ft of office space.

Arcadis

Acquisition of Malcolm Pirnie makes a big splash in water/wastewater market

The new year has offered Arcadis, the Amsterdam-based design, engineering and program management company, a fresh start in the region. It rang in 2011 having integrated its latest acquisition, Malcolm Pirnie of White Plains, N.Y., with both entities working off of a single operational platform. It also has a head start, thanks to a boost in project wins by its new affiliate.

“We’ve booked over $100 million of new work together through that synergy effort with Malcom Pirnie,” says Steve Blake, chairman and CEO of Arcadis U.S., which is based in Highlands Ranch, Colo.

Blake says Arcadis is positioned for a good year in 2011 as well. “That might sound a little strange given the market that we’re in, but 2010 for us was a good year, even though it was tough in terms of what the budgets looked like for municipalities and for the [federal] government,” he adds.

Regionally, Blake sees the Northeast as a stable bet because the market has ongoing infrastructure needs and steadier spending patterns compared with once high-growth regions such as the Southwest.

Malcolm Pirnie has certainly given Arcadis a strong foothold in the New York region. On the $1.4-billion Catskill/Delaware Ultraviolet Disinfection Facility in Valhalla, N.Y., the Pirnie division is providing construction management, water supply, treatment and distribution, and resident engineering services. Construction of what will be the world’s largest ultraviolet disinfection facility for the N.Y.C. Department of Environmental Protection is set to be completed in 2012.

Malcolm Pirnie is working on other N.Y.C. DEP projects, including offering construction management and resident engineering services for the $2.4-billion Croton Water Filtration Plant in the Bronx, a project slated for completion in 2014. It also is serving as construction administrator for improvements to the Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant in Brooklyn, part of a $4-billion, multiyear effort to upgrade and expand the city’s largest treatment facility.

Blake says the Malcolm Pirnie acquisition, which closed last year, has also paid off as the company uses its affiliate’s Strategic Client Development strategy, which features a team focused on cross-selling opportunities to help the company lean on all of its divisions in order to win large projects or programs. Bill Dee, Malcolm Pirnie’s longtime CEO, became the global director of the water business line for Arcadis as of Jan. 1.

Structure Tone

Dominant player in the interiors market diversifies its portfolio through new affiliates

A growing backlog, a stronger foothold in 3D modeling and a big technology upgrade are on the docket for Structure Tone this year, its 40th in business.

The New York-based firm continues to dominate the interiors market, which has held up better than most sectors during the recession. Current projects include a 390,000-sq-ft fit-out for the Proskauer Rose law firm in Times Square and an 800,000-sq-ft project for ADP in Roseland, N.J.

The firm is reaping the rewards of past acquisitions as well. In addition to Pavarini McGovern, New York, which it acquired in 2002, Structure Tone added L.F. Driscoll, Bala Cynwyd, Pa., in 2009. In March, Pavarini will start the $30-million, 47,000-sq-ft Campbell Sports Complex for Columbia University. It is also completing a pair of school projects for the N.Y.C. School Construction Authority. Driscoll is partnering with Tocci Building, Woburn, Mass., on a $110-million facade and infrastructure overhaul of the 253,200-sq-ft Rodino Federal Building in Newark, N.J.

CEO Robert Mullen says the activity underscores the firm’s positive momentum. “In the New York metropolitan area, we are projecting some moderate growth of around 10% to 15% for the group.”

Structure Tone is also launching a major technology platform upgrade that puts all Structure Tone affiliates on a single system for financial management, internal controls and project management.

Structure Tone recently unveiled its “smart room,” a facility at its Manhattan headquarters where the entire team—from owner to subcontractors—can convene for detailed 3D project modeling in a fully equipped presentation space. Mullen says that focus builds on 3D modeling practices long used by Driscoll.

Perkins Eastman

Merger with EE&K adds significant urban master-planning capabilities

Following the merger of Perkins Eastman and Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn (EE&K) in late 2010, the combined 600-employee New York-based firm aims to integrate its core strengths and expand its presence regionally, nationally and globally.