The 2014 Jury of Fellows from the American Institute of Architects has elevated 139 AIA members to its prestigious College of Fellows, an honor awarded to members who have made significant contributions to the profession. Three members from Colorado were named as Fellows. The three—Nan Anderson, FAIA; Alan Ford, FAIA; and Mary Morissette, FAIA—will be honored at an investiture ceremony during the 2014 AIA National Convention and Design Exposition in Chicago, held from June 26 – 28. Nan Anderson, with Denver’s Anderson Hallas Architects PC, was nominated in AIA’s category one, for architects who promote the aesthetic, scientific and practical
Total construction spending edged up 0.1% in December and rose by a modest 4.8% for all of 2013, as a robust market for apartments and single-family houses outweighed downturns in private nonresidential and public projects, according to a recent analysis of new Census Bureau data by the Associated General Contractors of America. “Residential construction ended on a strong note in 2013 and should remain positive for at least the next several months,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “Meanwhile, private nonresidential spending appears to be poised for a rebound, but the short-term outlook for public construction is still negative.”Construction
After weeks of harrowing rockfall work, one lane of U.S. 550 in southwestern Colorado is open to traffic on a limited basis. A massive rockslide closed the remote highway on Jan. 13. The rugged, two-lane road, also known as the Million Dollar Highway, winds over 11,018-ft-high Red Mountain Pass between the small towns of Silverton and Ouray. Related Links: Rigging for Rescue Blog About Ruby Walls Rockslide CDOT Video of the Ruby Walls Rockslide Mitigation The closure came when a section of rock the size of a football field sheared away from a towering cliff known as the Ruby Walls
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had rebounded in December, increased again in January. The Index now stands at 80.7 (1985=100), up from 77.5 in December. The Present Situation Index increased to 79.1 from 75.3. The Expectations Index increased to 81.8 from 79.0 last month. Consumers’ assessment of overall present-day conditions continues to improve. Those claiming business conditions are “good” increased to 21.5% from 20.2%, while those claiming business conditions are “bad” edged down to 22.8% from 23.2%. Consumers’ appraisal of the labor market was also more positive. Those saying jobs are “plentiful” ticked up to 12.7% from 11.9%,
New construction starts in December grew 5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $554.5 billion, according to McGraw Hill Construction, a division of McGraw Hill Financial. Although both nonresidential building and housing settled back during the final month of 2013, the nonbuilding construction sector (public works and electric utilities) finished the year on a strong note. For 2013 as a whole, total construction starts advanced 6% to $516.8 billion. This follows the 10% gain reported for 2012 (which drew support from a record amount of new electric utility starts that year) and modest 2% gains in both 2010 and
A two-block stretch of 18th Street between Wynkoop and Blake streets in Lower Downtown Denver will be converted from one-way to two-way traffic this year. RTD’s new circulator service, the Free MetroRide, will debut this spring and travel from Union Station to Civic Center Station along 18th and 19th streets as part of RTD’s FasTracks transit expansion. In January 2013, the city of Denver re-examined the efficiency of the transportation network in LoDo. The many changes taking place in the area—including the pending completion of the Denver Union Station project, a significant increase in residential living and Denver’s growing multi-modal
Following consistently increasing demand for design services throughout most of 2013, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) has posted its first consecutive months of contraction since May and June 2012. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine- to 12-month lead time between architecture billings and construction spending.The American Institute of Architects reported the December ABI score was 48.5, down from a mark of 49.8 in November. This score reflects a decrease in design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index was 59.2, up from the reading of 57.8
The Colorado Dept. of Transportation’s Transportation Commission achieved two milestones for the I-70 mountain corridor in mid-January, approving $55 million to widen the westbound Twin Tunnel and finalizing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between CDOT, Clear Creek County and the city of Idaho Springs. Photo courtesy of CDOT After completion of the new eastbound bore of the I-70 Twin Tunnels in 2013, CDOT will begin work on a new westbound bore later this year. The MOU provides a framework for making short and mid-term improvements to the long-congested I-70 corridor within Clear Creek County. “Both of these initiatives mark significant progress
Construction materials prices expanded just 0.1% in December and are up 1.3% year over year, according to a Jan. 15 Producer Price Index released by the Dept. of Labor. Nonresidential construction materials prices also rose only 0.1% for the month and are 1% higher than the same time one year ago. “Materials prices continue to be unusually well behaved, neither rising nor falling aggressively on a month-to-month basis,” said Associated Builders and Contractors Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “That said, there was some volatility in individual input segments, including natural gas prices, which were up 7.8%, and crude petroleum, which was
Nonresidential construction spending grew 0.6% on a monthly and yearly basis in November 2013, according to a Jan. 2 release by the U.S. Census Bureau. In November, spending totaled $583.436 billion on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis. “Construction activity bounced back in November, due in part to the end of the federal government shutdown and an accompanying return to normalcy,” said Associated Builders and Contractors Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Nonresidential construction spending was up 2.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis compared to September, which makes a better comparison because October, with the federal government shutdown, was not a normal month.“The
RSS
