A Seattle K-8 public school built under state sustainability protocols had to be shut down after staff and students complained of annoying odors. When toxicology testing showed that high pH and moisture content in the concrete flooring had reacted with carpet adhesive and backing to produce methyl hexanol, a volatile organic compound, the school district had no choice but to carry out expensive repairs. Photo: Seattle Public Schools Carpet adhesive and moisture reacted. Opened in September 2009, the $37-million South Shore School struggled with complaints about the smell until closing in April 2010. The toxicology investigation confirmed the extent of
The second major eminent domain decision in 13 months for the New York State Court of Appeals has Columbia University poised to move ahead on its $6.3-billion expansion in Harlem in upper Manhattan. Image: Columbia University In A recent court decision clears Columbia University to move forward on its planned 17-acre expansion, the southwestern corner of which is shown in the above rendering. In a unanimous decision, a panel of judges in Albany, N.Y., overturned an earlier ruling that prevented the state from seizing by eminent domain a small amount of property currently home to private businesses. Columbia already owned
A Seattle K-8 public school built under state sustainability protocols had to be shut down after staff and students complained of annoying odors. When toxicology testing showed that high pH and moisture content in the concrete flooring had reacted with carpet adhesive and backing to produce methyl hexanol, a volatile organic compound, the school district had no choice but to carry out expensive repairs. Photo: Seattle Public Schools Carpet adhesive and moisture reacted. Opened in September 2009, the $37-million school struggled with complaints about the smell until closing in April 2010. The toxicology investigation confirmed the extent of the problem.
The Great Recession is going smoothly at Suffolk Construction Co., the dominant general building contractor in Boston. Yes, backlog is down. Sure, employees have been let go or reassigned. Most building contractors have done the same. But on a recent May morning at Suffolk’s headquarters in a converted industrial building in the tough Roxbury neighborhood, the company’s sole owner and chief executive is so pumped with optimism you would hardly guess the building-construction sector is in the middle of a historic slump. Photo: Bryce Vickmark Upon meeting John F. Fish at the headquarters, he doesn’t immediately show off Suffolk’s portfolio
The Dietze Construction Group, a building contractor in the Washington, D.C. area, filed May 18 for protection from its creditors in U.S. bankruptcy court in Virginia. The company had planned to sell itself to Suffolk Construction Co., a much bigger Boston-based contractor, but the announced deal apparently had never been completed. Based in Ashburn, Va., Dietze listed numerous creditors and several million dollars in unpaid debt. The creditors included concrete, electrical and mechanical subcontractors or suppliers. Dietze had 2009 revenue of about $150 million while Suffolk’s revenue for the year was about $1.7 billion. Suffolk’s revenue was boosted by the
The Dietze Construction Group, a building contractor in the Washington, D.C. area, filed May 18 for protection from its creditors in U.S. bankruptcy court in Virginia. The company had planned to sell itself to Suffolk Construction Co., a much bigger Boston-based contractor, but the announced deal apparently had never been completed. Based in Ashburn, Va., Dietze listed numerous creditors and several million dollars in unpaid debt. The creditors included concrete, electrical and mechanical subcontractors or suppliers. Dietze had 2009 revenue of about $150 million while Suffolk’s revenue for the year was about $1.7 billion. Suffolk’s revenue was boosted by the
The signs were all there. The project manager’s attention level was down. Tasks that he would typically complete in one day took a week. Mistakes cut the value of the plans he prepared. He no longer followed up with key people on the team. In the end, he lost interest in both the project management and technical aspects of his job, so his managers called him in for a talk that led to a parting of ways. “He told us he was glad to be fired, because the pressures of the job had become too much,” says a former manager.
Snapshot January 5, 2010 Our editors are everywhere�at all the industry events that matter most. When They're not speaking on panels, they're busy taking notes�and snapping photos�so they can inform their readers about what was said and who was there. The restoration of the Coweta County Courthouse in Newnan, Ga. The restoration of the Coweta County Courthouse in Newnan, Ga., included a complete replacement of the dome’s copper cladding to match historical details, says the architect, Lord, Aeck & Sargent, Atlanta. The courtroom was also restored to its original colors and finishes. Selective demolition helped reveal many of the building’s
