St. Louis Habitat for Humanity Builds Homes With Career Diversity Program Graduates

Habitat for Humanity recently completed two new homes in St. Louis’ Gate District neighborhood, bringing together a collaborative team led by Concrete Strategies (part of Clayco Enterprise) and workforce diversity nonprofit Construction Career Development Initiative (CCDI). The four-day foundation build took place at 3429 and 3427 Park Avenue, with 12 skilled Concrete Strategies employees and CCDI volunteers. 

While Concrete Strategies and CCDI provided volunteers and donations, the project was also fueled by a partnership with the St. Louis Job Corps Center’s construction program, Geotechnology Inc. and other local subcontractors who partner with CCDI to hire program graduates into full-time employment.

“Habitat for Humanity appreciates the tremendous planning, skills and time that each of the partners in this build have dedicated,” said Kimberly McKinney, CEO at Habitat for Humanity Saint Louis. “It’s especially meaningful knowing we are bringing together a change-making group of individuals to participate. Our team of community partners are driving equitable opportunities for the underserved in our community.”

Volunteer Shutaun Williams, a 2020 CCDI graduate and Concrete Strategies carpenter, joined fellow graduates and four of his former St. Louis Job Corps instructors on the project. 

“The build is bringing together a group of people who want to do good for our community,” said Williams. “I am happy to be part of this project, and even more so, I am proud to be a part of the CCDI family.”

Illinois Structural Engineers Announce 2021 Award Winners

The Structural Engineers Association of Illinois recently announced its 2021 Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards winners, recognizing creative achievement via innovative structural design and individual contributions that advance the profession. The winners are:

• Lavicka Award (small firm/small project): The BMX Bowls Bridge in Houston by Endrestudio
• Best Project up to $10 million: 1040 W. Fulton in Chicago by IMEG Corp.
• Best Project $50 million to $150 million: Shenzhen Rural Commercial Bank HQ in Shenzhen, China, by SOM
• Best Project More Than $150 million: Circa in Los Angeles by Cary Kopczynski & Co.
• Best Renovation/Restoration: Chicago Union Station Clinton Street Improvements by Klein & Hoffman
• Best Industrial/Utility: Sooner Plant Units 1 & 2 Conveyor 10 & 11 in Red Rock, Okla., by Wolf Point Engineers
• Best Special Feature: Robotic Construction—The Glass Vault at Westminster University, London, by SOM
• Best Bridge/Transportation Project: Lakefront Trail Pedestrian Bridge in Chicago by HNTB
• Jurors’ Favorite/Most Innovative Structure: St. Regis Chicago by Magnusson Klemencic Associates

Woolpert Wins Livability, Sustainability Award

Dayton, Ohio-based Woolpert was recently honored with an International Making Cities Livable award for its design of Proscenium at the 57th IMCL conference. Proscenium is a more than $60-million, mixed-use development that is planning its grand opening this fall in downtown Carmel, Ind. 
For its 2021 urban design awards, the IMCL sought well-designed, suburban revitalization projects that embodied a natural fitness to purpose and that were socially and environmentally responsible.

IMEG Wins ACEC Grand Conceptor Award

Photo courtesy of IMEG Corp.

Rock Island, Ill.-based IMEG Corp. recently won the 2021 Engineering Excellence Grand Conceptor Award, the highest honor from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC). Presented annually, the Grand Conceptor Award honors the year’s most outstanding engineering achievement in the U.S.
IMEG won the award for its Denver team’s design of the 36-acre Denver Water Operations Complex Redevelopment, a $195-million, highly sustainable multiple-building project completed in 2019. “The Denver Water Operations Redevelopment project is a breathtaking example of sustainable design that showcases how the engineering industry is constantly innovating to raise the bar on environmentally friendly design,” said ACEC President and CEO Linda Bauer Darr.