Intermountain Best of 2009 Judges  December 2009 Rich Thorn President/CEO Associated General Contractors of Utah Thorn has more than three decades of experience in the construction industry. He has been with the AGC of Utah for 29 years, including 27 as president/CEO. Thorn comes from a construction family; his great-grandfather, Ashel O. Thorn, owned a heavy-highway contracting company in Utah County. Mehrdad Samie Project Architect ajc architects A native of Iran, Samie came to the U.S. at the age of 16, ending up in Salt Lake City when his car broke down. He has more than 20 years experience as an

Two Colorado engineers founded a new electrical engineering and lighting design firm specializing in sustainable and energy-efficient building design. Related Links: Top Colorado & Wyoming Newsmakers of 2009 Better Denver Bond Program Thrives DHA Wins Stimulus Grants Heading West No Help Wanted Colorado Transportation Stimulus Snapshot FASTER Bill to Boost CDOT Funds Mergers & Acquisitions Moves Tim Flanagan, a licensed electrical engineer in Colorado, and Melissa Friedland, an architectural engineer specializing in lighting design, launched GreenLight Engineering late last year. The firm’s mission is to provide exceptional electrical engineering and lighting design services that are environmentally responsible. GreenLight’s initial projects

Colorado industry unemployment will continue torise in 2010 but stay below the national norm. Related Links: Top Colorado & Wyoming Newsmakers of 2009 Better Denver Bond Program Thrives DHA Wins Stimulus Grants Heading West Colorado Transportation Stimulus Snapshot FASTER Bill to Boost CDOT Funds Mergers & Acquisitions New Businesses, New Offices Moves As U.S. GDP numbers improved this fall and the Dow flirted with 10,000, many economic pundits declared the recession over and the country on the mend, even as overall unemployment reached 10% nationwide. Meanwhile, construction unemployment in 2009 nearly doubled the general numbers, soaring to 19%, with some

The new $14-million East ParkCenter Boulevard Bridge in Boise will provide a new access to East Boise and Barber Valley for pedestrians and motor vehicles. Photo: Joe Evancho The entire project connects ParkCenter Boise and Warm Springs Avenue in southeast Boise and includes sidewalks, bike lanes and pedestrian tunnels and other greenbelt connections. Photo: Joe Evancho The large girders span the entire river, making it unnecessary to place a pier in the riverbed. Related Links: Traffic Cop Adam Zaragoza, Ada County Highway District project manager, says the bridge will allow easier access to recreation opportunities at Lucky Peak Reservoir and

The new 290-ft Boise Airport Air Traffic Control Tower is not only a highly visible landmark in Treasure Valley, it’s also the tallest building in Idaho. Photo: Layton Construction Layton�s biggest safety challenge was going 289 ft vertical, so crews brought in the largest crane in the valley and reviewed safety issues at weekly subcontractors meetings. Photo: Joe Evancho With the ability to control the sky within a 5-mile radius and up to 30,000 ft above the surface of the airport, the new $13-million tower will serve approximately 180,000 takeoffs and landings a year. Related Links: Spanning the River The

The voter-approved Denver Bond Program is expected to pour another $200 million in construction and improvement projects into the Denver area in 2010. Related Links: Top Colorado & Wyoming Newsmakers of 2009 DHA Wins Stimulus Grants Heading West No Help Wanted Colorado Transportation Stimulus Snapshot FASTER Bill to Boost CDOT Funds Mergers & Acquisitions New Businesses, New Offices Moves Over the past two years, the program has funded more than $100 million in city improvement projects, with another $200 million expected for 2010. Projects include improvements to roads, libraries, parks, recreation centers, child-care sites, hospitals, public safety, city buildings and

Related Links: Top Colorado & Wyoming Newsmakers of 2009 Better Denver Bond Program Thrives DHA Wins Stimulus Grants Heading West No Help Wanted FASTER Bill to Boost CDOT Funds Mergers & Acquisitions New Businesses, New Offices Moves Colorado will receive more than $500 million in American Recovery & Reinvestment Act funds for transportation projects statewide, with CDOT receiving nearly $330 million in federal highway funding and another $12.5 million in federal transit funding for projects in non-urbanized rural areas. The ARRA will also provide additional transportation funding directly to transit agencies and the three large metropolitan planning organizations in the

This month’s Colorado & Wyoming section of Mountain States Construction magazine highlights several Colorado construction industry association awards. The awards criteria and their scope differ with each association, but the winners represent many of the best projects completed in 2008 and throughout 2009. Photo: Frank Ooms Related Links: Better Denver Bond Program Thrives DHA Wins Stimulus Grants Heading West No Help Wanted Colorado Transportation Stimulus Snapshot FASTER Bill to Boost CDOT Funds Mergers & Acquisitions New Businesses, New Offices Moves Other industry awards programs have previously been covered in Colorado Construction and The Daily Journal or will be covered in

The Denver Housing Authority is getting the most out of its grant writing in winning five ARRA funding opportunities. Rendering: DHA The South Lincoln Park development project near the 10th and Osage light-rail station received $10 million in ARRA funds to create a mixed-income, mixeduse, transit-oriented community in Denver. Related Links: Top Colorado & Wyoming Newsmakers of 2009 Better Denver Bond Program Thrives Heading West No Help Wanted Colorado Transportation Stimulus Snapshot FASTER Bill to Boost CDOT Funds Mergers & Acquisitions New Businesses, New Offices Moves In a remarkable accomplishment, the Denver Housing Authority recently won five of five competitive

This winter, Rocky Mountain Power customers in Wyoming will begin reaping the low-cost electricity benefits of two new wind farms � High Plains and McFadden Ridge 1 in Albany and Carbon counties. Photo: Jackie Shumaker The delicate grace of the assembled windmills belies their massive girth. The 262.5-ft-tall hollow supporting towers are 15 ft in diameter. Each weighs in at 470,000 lb. Photo: Jackie Shumaker RES Americas used a 650-ton crawler crane to erect the wind towers. The cell weight, 85,000 lb., dictates the size of the crane. Photo: Jackie Shumakere The General Electric-manufactured 1.5-mw turbines feature three-bladed rotors that