General contractor Milton J. Womack Inc., recently broke ground on a $49 million project to rebuild Lee High School in Baton Rouge, La. Related Links: Milton J. Womack Inc. GraceHebert Architects Womack Project Executive Dale Phillips says the owner demolished the old school facilities which were originally constructed in the 60s. Four new buildings, totaling 190,000 square feet of combined space, will be constructed on the 25-acre site. It will consists of three three-story "academy buildings" to serve up to 1,200 students along with a large common-use facility featuring a gym, cafeteria and meeting spaces.The school was designed by local
Ranked as one of the top zoological parks in the country, New Orleans' Audubon Zoo is home to some critically acclaimed exhibits that have set a standard for other zoos around the world. Audubon's latest project is the construction of a new orangutan exhibit, an elephant exhibit and a river water ride for guests. Spread across three acres, the new attractions have visually appealing designs to immerse visitors in the natural world. Related Links: Audubon Nature Institute Gibbs Construction But project architects and contractors say working in a zoo comes with its own set of issues involving wildlife. Atypical construction
Biofuel company Cool Planet Energy Systems recently held a symbolic groundbreaking on a biorefinery in Alexandria, La. Related Links: Cool Planet Energy Systems Dubbed "Project Genesis," the facility will be constructed on a 28-acre site on the Red River Waterway in central Louisiana. It is the first of three biorefineries that Cool Planet will build with a $168 million capital investment in the state to commercialize the company's renewable gasoline blendstocks.Cool Planet Energy Systems Vice President of Business Development Mike Rocke says the refinery will be designed to produce 10 million gallons per year of high-octane, renewable gasoline blends. The
Louisiana is expected to see more than $1 billion of coastal restoration work in the next two years with $489 million of projects under construction and another $600 million of projects scheduled to start by 2015. Related Links: Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority Kyle Graham, executive director of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, spoke at the State of the Coast conference in mid-March. Louisiana has been promised nearly $2 billion in Clean Water Act and criminal fines from BP and Transocean for their role in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Those funds, along with other sources, are expected
Related Links: CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center McInnis Brothers Construction has started work on Phase 3 of a $55 million hospital expansion at CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center in Shreveport, La. The project broke ground in mid-March with a fast-track construction process and is expected to be completed in late-2015.The 118,000-sq-ft West Wing expansion will add two new entire floors to the facility and will house the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Labor and Delivery, Cancer Center and Inpatient Rehabilitation.Chris R. Elberson, AIA, of lead project architect Somdal Associates, says the project is part of an overall campus renovation and expansion that
Lemoine Co. is constructing a new 178,000-sq-ft student union at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The $36 million project is roughly halfway through construction and completion is expected in December of 2014. Courtesy of The Lemoine Co. Lemoine Co. is constructing a new 178,000-sq-ft student union at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Related Links: University of Louisiana at Lafayette The new student union is being built on the location of the old one and will feature a cafeteria, dining area, bookstore, ballroom and theater. The facility spans nearly an entire city block and sits on the edge of
Eight years after being flooded and damaged by Hurricane Katrina, the Audubon Nature Institute is embarking on an $8.5 million project to reconstruct facilities at the Nature Center. Courtesy of the Audubon Nature Institute The Audubon Nature Institute's new facility will span approximately 13,000 sq-ft in three adjacent and connected buildings. Related Links: Audubon Nature Institute Steve Dorand, senior vice president of design for the Audubon Nature Institute, says the new facility will span approximately 13,000 sq-ft in three adjacent and connected buildings. It will include classrooms, a planetarium and an 8,500-sq-ft exhibit pavilion.Audubon is working with local architect Billes
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is constructing a new $100 million drainage system in the suburbs of New Orleans. Courtesy of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers The Harahan Pump to the River Project consists of five individual projects with 8,700 linear feet of 84-in buried steel pipe and a pumping capacity of 1,200 cu-ft per second. Related Links: Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project The Harahan Pump to the River Project consists of five individual projects with 8,700 linear feet of 84-in buried steel pipe and a pumping capacity of 1,200 cu-ft per second. While the Harahan and
Dredging and construction company Weeks Marine is in the process of restoring a portion of Louisiana's eroding coastline in a $70 million land-building project. The company is moving 3.3 million cu-yds of sediment to create 300 acres of beach and dunes along a six-mile stretch of coastline in Lafourche Parish. Courtesy of Weeks Marine Weeks Marine is moving 3.3 million cu-yds of sediment to create 300 acres of beach and dunes along a six-mile stretch of coastline in Lafourche Parish. Related Links: Weeks Marine Lafourche Parish Weeks Marine Project Manager Gary Johnson says the company is using a 40-in hydraulic
The Lemoine Co. is about halfway through building a 90,000-sq-ft hotel in Harvey, La. At first glance, a rendering of the 150-room hotel may not look unusual, but the five-story building is being constructed entirely with wood framing, something rare for a commercial building of this size. Related Links: The Lemoine Co. Project managers say that aside from a few challenges and some different construction techniques, using wood hasn't proved to be much different than using steel or metal studs.The hotel sits on the Boomtown Casino New Orleans property on the banks of the Industrial Canal. It features 150 guest