The Kemmerer family, owner of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, faced a dilemma five years ago. Photo by Tristan Greszko The JHMR tram has the longest vertical rise of any North American ski resort and provides visitors with 360-degree vistas that include Grand Teton National Park, the Snake River and the Jackson Hole Valley. The resort�s iconic aerial tram, dubbed �Big Red,� was a year shy of turning 40. A study had revealed that the tram required extensive maintenance and improvements. The Kemmerers had to decide whether to invest about $15 million to upgrade the tram or an estimated $25

Even before Matt Wassam’s great-great-great grandfather settled on the plains and valleys of Colorado in the 1800s, ranchers and farmers were using solar power. Not photovoltaic solar panels. That would come later. “There is a reason my great grandpa’s old dairy barn and house, still standing near Palmer Lake, has windows all along the south facing side,” said Wassam, general manager for SPG Solar in the Rocky Mountain region. “They used the sun to grow and dry crops, heat the barn and stuff like that. Operating a business that is sustainable for generations is second nature to people of the

BOWCUTT EngineersJustin Bowcutt of Envision Engineering recently earned his Professional Engineers certification in Utah. Bowcutt works as project manager and has experience in design engineering for government and private clientele, staff supervision and client coordination for the firm’s Salt Lake City office. Merrick & Co. of Aurora, Colo., has expanded its civil engineering group with the addition of two new staff and the promotion of several key team members. Michael Martin, a 10-year employee of Merrick, has been named public sector market leader. He will expand his project management responsibilities and will now pursue new public sector project opportunities for

An interior renovation of Aspen’s newest Italian restaurant Ellina completed in December. The renovation included new lighting, artwork, furniture, kitchen equipment and finishes done to match the flavor of an Italian restaurant, according to the design team at Rowland+Broughton of Aspen, the project architect. The Denver Public School Board recently approved plans for the development of photovoltaic solar energy projects on 16 school buildings throughout the district. The projects are the result of more than two years of planning and coordination by Denver-based renewable-energy developer Oak Leaf Energy Partners with the school district and the Denver Green Print Council. The

Colorado & WyomingThe National Center for Atmospheric Research has selected Denver’s Saunders Construction Inc. for construction management and general contracting services at the NCAR-Wyoming Supercomputing Center project in Cheyenne. Saunders will provide preconstruction and, potentially, construction services for the $66-million, 150,000-sq-ft building. The project award was made following a competitive selection process. Tom Pirog recently joined Pinkard Construction Co. of Lakewood’s business development team. In his business development role at Pinkard, Pirog will work with Vice President Jim Mellor to build new and repeat business opportunities, assist in formulating business development strategies, and maintain and grow Pinkard’s loyal client base.

Design is nearly complete on the Sego Lily School in Murray, Utah. Rendering courtesy of Gorilla Design The Sego Lily School in Murray, Utah, will host a number of green features and will seek LEED-Platinum certification when complete. The new school, designed by Gorilla Design and Envision Electrical Engineering of Salt Lake City, will offer a number of green features, from native landscaping and low-water use fixtures to a solar array on the roof of the learning spaces. Other green space includes a nature and vegetable garden with a greenhouse, a green roof to reduce energy use and an interior

Four Intermountain firms involved in a variety of construction disciplines have had to reinvent themselves in some manner. Some have seen more dramatic changes than others, yet each firm has worked hard in its own way to adapt to those changes. Owyhee Construction, Idaho Joe McClure is president of Owyhee Construction, an Idaho underground utility company in business since 1977. McClure says that Owyhee has downsized its equipment fleet as well as field staff from 80 employees to about 25. They have also expanded their work-search area. “We used to look for work about 100 miles out. Now we are

Two recently completed eastern Idaho highway construction projects, one on Idaho 48 in Rigby and the other on U.S. 20 near Henry’s Lake, are the first of 16 Idaho projects to use federal stimulus funds, according Idaho Transportation Dept. District 6 Manager Bruce King. Photo: IDOT In December, crews from HK Contractors of Idaho Falls completed work on a 1.7 mile stretch of Idaho 48 through Rigby. The total cost of both projects was more than $5 million. In 2009, Idaho received $182 million for highway construction in stimulus funds. In December, crews from HK Contractors of Idaho Falls completed

URS Corp. will move the firm�s Washington Division headquarters from Boise to Denver by the end of 2010. The announcement was made at a URS executive meeting in Houston last month. URS’s media relations firm, New York-based Sard Verbinnen & Co., did not return calls seeking confirmation of the move. However, a URS executive in Boise, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the move will happen, but added, “It’s premature to know how many people will stay in Boise or move to Denver.” The Boise office currently employs 500 people and reported its FY 2008 revenue at $10.9 billion. Teri

Project News Simon Contractors of Cheyenne, along with engineers Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc. of Denver and AVI Engineers of Cheyenne, have wrapped up the Cheyenne Regional Airport Runway reconstruction. The $6-million project, which started in April, rehabilitated the 150-ft-wide and 6,690-ft-long Runway 13-31. The runway was originally constructed of concrete, but the keel section, a 50-ft-wide strip down the center of the runway, was reconstructed with rubberized asphalt in the mid-1980s. Photo: Simon Contractors Reconstruction of the Cheyenne Airport runway rehabed the 150-ft-wide and 6,690-ft-long Runway 13-31. Photo: Mortenson Construction The Wilderness Road Brigade Battalion Headquarters Building at Fort Carson