SMUTSKenneth Smuts has been named vice president and project executive for Coastal Construction Group, Miami. Previously, Smuts worked as senior vice president and managing director for The Related Group, a Miami-based residential developer, where he managed the firm's ICON Brickell project. Coastal also named Steve Pouk to the position of vice president. Pouk most recently served as a senior vice president for Starwood Hotels and Resorts, where he oversaw design and construction operations. Christian Jacobsen has joined Balfour Beatty Construction in Atlanta as director of interior services for the contractor's Georgia operations. He will oversee all interiors and mission-critical projects.FLIERJACOBSENNicole

McGraw-Hill Construction reports that the value of Georgia’s June construction starts totaled nearly $1.2 billion in June, an increase of 34% compared to the same period of a year ago. Related Links: Florida Construction Starts Rise 32% in June North Carolina Contracts Take Off in June South Carolina Contracts Decline 12% in June A surge in commercial starts fueled the increase. Nonresidential contracts totaled nearly $676.8 million, or 72% above last June’s total of $393.9 million. Residential contracts also moved up, with the latest total of $366.9 million representing a 19% gain from the year-ago period. The nonbuilding sector, which

A huge boost in the nonbuilding sector propelled the value of North Carolina’s June construction starts total to an estimated $2.2 billion, for a 98% improvement over the same period of a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast. Related Links: South Carolina Contracts Decline 12% in June Georgia Commercial Construction Activity Surges Florida Construction Starts Rise 32% in June New nonbuilding contracts—which include infrastructure projects—totaled more than $1.1 billion in June, or nearly $1 billion higher than last June’s total of $175.2 million.Nonresidential contracts also got started at an increased pace in June, with this category

A significant decline in the value of nonbuilding projects caused South Carolina’s overall total for new construction contracts to decline 12% in June, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast. The state recorded an estimated $648.9 million in new contracts during June. Related Links: North Carolina Contracts Take Off in June Georgia Commercial Construction Activity Surges Florida Construction Starts Rise 32% in June The nonbuilding sector fell 53% compared to the same period of a year ago, for a June total of $113.6 million. It was the lone negative sector for the month, however.Nonresidential experienced a 17% increase in

The value of Florida’s June construction starts improved by 32% compared to the same period of a year ago, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, with more than $2.4 billion in new contracts moving forward during the month. Related Links: Georgia's Commercial Construction Activity Surges in June North Carolina Contracts Take Off in June South Carolina Contracts Decline 12% in June All three construction sectors experienced strong, double-digit percentage jumps in June. The nonbuilding sector, which includes infrastructure projects, improved by the highest percentage, 67%, to tally $665.4 million.McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of ENR Southeast, estimated new residential starts at $843.8 million, or

John Carlson was named chief executive officer of Charles Perry Partners Inc., Gainesville, Fla. CPPI was recently formed by the merger of Charles Perry Construction and PPI Construction Management, two Gainesville-based construction companies long affiliated with each other. Carlson was previously a principal with PPI. Breck Weingart was named chairman of the newly formed firm. Weingart was previously a partner at both PPI and Charles Perry Construction. CARLSON Domenic Scorpio and Brian Leslie were also named principals with CPPI. David Bitter was named a supervising architect in the Atlanta office of Parsons Brinckerhoff. He has more than 25 years of

SnapShot  July 4, 2011 Submitted By: Diane Rutledge, Director of Marketing and Brand,Suffolk Construction Co., West Palm Beach, Fla. To capture the drama of architect Jonathan Parks’ design for the Palm Avenue Parking Garage, Sarasota, Fla., photographer Barry Grossman tried “to treat the structure as a sculptural, artistic form.” The resulting image shows a building that seems to glow from within. The 700-space garage, with a metal-panel exterior, was designed to LEED Gold status and features photovoltaics, charging stations and rainwater harvesting. Photo by Barry Grossman, Grossman Photography, Grossmanphoto.com

On The Scene   July 4, 2011 Kenneth G. Simonson In May, Kenneth G. Simonson, chief economist with Associated General Contractors of America, addressed a group of AGC of Greater Florida members in Orlando.There, Simonson said he expects modest improvement in overall construction activity for the rest of 2011, but with a more significant uptick in multifamily— with starts in this sector up 7% in April 2011 compared with April 2010. Retailers are not building new stores, keeping that sector depressed. However, hoteliers are modernizing their properties as revenue per available room has grown, particularly at the luxury level. In Florida,

Florida Secretary of Transportation Ananth Prasad announced July 1 that Gov. Rick Scott (R) has decided to allow Central Florida’s planned, nearly $1.3-billion commuter rail project, SunRail, to proceed to construction. The governor’s office issued a brief statement: “Today, Gov. Rick Scott authorized Florida Dept. of Transportation Secretary Ananth Prasad to sign the Full Funding Grant Agreement to continue the process of implementing the SunRail project, as approved in the 2009 Special Legislative Session.”Scott had suspended the project shortly after taking office earlier this year when he placed a hold on all state contracts valued at more than $1 million.

Nearly $1.7 billion in new Florida construction contracts moved forward in May, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, but that was 11% behind last year’s pace, as all three sectors declined during the month. Both the nonresidential and nonbuilding sectors were 13% lower than a year ago. New nonresidential contracts totaled $570.4 million for the month, while nonbuilding starts tallied roughly $432.9 million. The value of new residential contracts was estimated at $683.6 million, or 8% below last May’s pace.For the year to date, McGraw-Hill Construction estimates the value of 2011 Florida contracts at nearly $8.8 billion, or 23% below the $11.4