This year's Best Projects competition in the Mountain States region featured more than 80 entries. As in past years, projects were judged on design and construction quality, their contribution to the community and industry practice, and how well teams overcame unusual challenges through collaboration and innovation. Four projects were honored for safety programs.
Judges for the ENR Mountain States competition considered projects located in Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado, with an extended reach for entries in Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Firms could enter more than one project per category but not the same project in different categories. Scoring was done on a numerical scale, and ties were allowed if aggregate scores were very close and judges deemed the projects to be of nearly equal merit.
After all the tallies were completed, the judges chose by consensus two projects as Best Overall—those that clearly merited the highest recognition. One—the Ralph L. Carr Colorado Judicial Center in Denver—represents Colorado, Wyoming and the Plains states. The other—the Adobe corporate campus in Salt Lake City—represents the Intermountain states of Utah, Montana and Idaho.
Other noteworthy projects that were finalists for the Best Overall designation include Mesa Verde National Park Visitor and Research Center, the renovation of the Wayne N. Aspinall federal building and U.S. courthouse, U.S. 95 Sand Creek Byway and the Salt Lake City Public Safety Building.
