UPDATE: This post was updated on Feb. 9, with the addition of several contenders for the Top Starts ranking.

Once again, ENR Southeast is compiling our annual Top Starts ranking, which lists the largest projects to start construction during the preceding year. As part of that process, we ask readers to tell us about their largest projects in the Southeast—which includes Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas—that started construction in 2014. But we also use news stories (including our own) from the past year; Dodge project reports; and company announcements, among other sources.

Of course, one of the main suspects for the "top" of our Top Starts ranking would be the $1.4-billion Atlanta Falcons Stadium project, being built by a joint venture led by Holder Construction. Then there's the other Atlanta stadium project, the $670-million Braves ballpark project, which also started construction last year. 

The Atlanta Falcons recently uploaded this project update to the team's Youtube channel.

So far, we've uncovered some other contenders for the Top Starts' ranking's top tier. Those include the nearly $1.2-billion Lynx Blue Line light-rail extension in Charlotte, N.C. Also, there's the Georgia Dept. of Transportation's $840-million Northwest Corridor project, which adds reversible lanes to interstates 75 and 575 in the Atlanta area.

Also, Walt Disney World kicked off construction last January for its new Avatar-themed land, a project estimated at $500 million. Balfour Beatty Construction is reported to be leading the construction effort. Up in Greensboro, N.C., Flatiron Construction Corp. started construction last summer on its $111.7-million Greensboro Eastern Loop Improvements contract.

Other projects likely to make the upcoming Top Starts ranking include the $99.6-million modification to NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3, which was featured in the Jan. 26, 2015, print edition of ENR Southeast. And the $150-million phase-one expansion for Navy Federal Credit Union in Pensacola, Fla. Both of these projects were reported to ENR Southeast by Hensel Phelps, which is serving as the general contractor for both contracts.

The Atlanta Braves held a ceremonial groundbreaking last September for the team's new $670-million ballpark in Cobb County, Ga. (Video by Associated Press)

UPDATE

In addition to the contracts listed above, here's an alphabetical list of other projects that currently appear to be strong contenders for inclusion on this year's coming Top Starts ranking. 

Editor's Note: Projects are included here as possible candidates for the Top Starts ranking after ENR Southeast has verified certain key information, such as construction start date and total cost. However, due to the potential for other, previously undisclosed projects to qualify for the ranking, inclusion in this blog post does not guarantee that a particular project will make the complete final ranking that will appear in ENR Southeast's March 23 edition.

 

  • Alta Dadeland, Miami – Coastal Construction
  • American Express Service Center, Sunrise, Fla. – Turner Construction Co.
  • The Bond, Miami – Coastal Construction
  • Fendi Chateau, Miami Beach – Coastal Construction
  • Golisano Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida, Fort Myers, Fla. – Skanska USA Building
  • Interstate 95 Widening, Volusia County, Fla. – Archer Western Contractors
  • Marina Palms II, North Miami – Coastal Construction
  • Modify Vehicle Assembly Building High Bay 3, Kennedy Space Center, Fla. – Hensel Phelps
  • Northside Hospital Cherokee, Canton, Ga. – Batson-Cook Construction
  • Oceana Bal Harbour, Bal Harbour, Fla. – Coastal Construction
  • Panorama Tower, Miami – Tutor Perini Corp.
  • Richland County Transportation Penny Construction Program, Richland County, S.C. – M.B. Kahn Construction Co.
  • S.R. 826 Reconstruction, Miami-Dade County – Community Condotte De Moya Joint Venture
  • Sinai Residences, Boca Raton, Fla. – Suffolk Construction
  • Surf Club, Miami Beach – Coastal Construction
  • University of Florida/Shands Cardiovascular/Neuroscience Hospital, Gainesville, Fla. – Skanska USA Building
  • Veterans Administration Health Care Center, Charlotte, N.C. – J.E. Dunn Construction
It's Still Not Too Late - Tell Us About Your Projects
Which brings us to one of our most important sources for the Top Starts ranking—you. As we've done in past years, we're asking our Southeast contractor readers to tell us about their biggest contracts that started construction during 2014. Based on the Top Starts ranking's history, a project's total cost would likely to be a minimum of $75 million to make it onto the final ranking, to be published in March.
 
Our outreach to contractors is one of the most important tools we use to make this ranking as comprehensive and accurate as possible. Therefore, if your firm started construction on a project located in the Southeast region of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, and its total cost met or exceeded the $75-million minimum estimage, we'd like you to encourage you to send us the information listed below. To do that, simply email the project's details to me, at Scott.Judy@construction.com. 

Project Name:
Location:
Start Date:
Completion Date:
Total Cost:
Contractor: 
Designer:

Finally, as we confirm more projects for inclusion on our Top Starts ranking—to be published March 23, 2015—we'll list them here. So, stay tuned!