More than $390 million in road construction projects on state highways will be underway this year in the metro Denver area, with more than a third of the total funded by the federal stimulus program.
Concrete repairs on C-470 between I-25 and Santa Fe Drive will once again take place this weekend, weather permitting. This weekend, crews will work from 8 p.m. on Friday, March 12th to 5 a.m. on Monday, March 15th, weather permitting. During this time, the following closures will be in place on C-470 and major delays are expected:
• Eastbound C-470 between University Boulevard and Yosemite: One lane of eastbound C-470 will be closed from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday. Major delays are expected and alternate routes are strongly advised.
• Eastbound C-470 to Quebec Street: The ramp from eastbound C-470 to Quebec Street will be completely closed from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday. Detour: Motorists can take Yosemite Street to Park Meadows Drive or University Boulevard to County Line Road.
• Quebec Street to Eastbound C-470: The ramp from Quebec Street to eastbound C-470 will be completely closed from 8 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday. Detour: Motorists can take County Line Road to either Yosemite Street or I-25.
When reconstructing one of Denver’s major business streets, Concrete Works of Colorado has found it helpful to its client — the city and the taxpayer — as well as the merchants along the South Broadway to move in like a colony of ants and get major pieces done in a day. Inside Lane observed one such day.
The weekend lane closures on eastbound C-470 between I-25 and Santa Fe Drive have been cancelled due to inclement weather; however, concrete repairs will resume next week.
Castle Rock Construction will continue concrete repairs on eastbound C-470 between I-25 and Santa Fe Drive, which will require various lane closures on C-470.
Starting at midnight on Friday night, weather permitting, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) will completely close the ramp from eastbound I-270 to I-70 for paving operations. The ramp will reopen by 5:30 a.m. on Monday.
The Pueblo Chieftain reports that Rep. Buffie McFadyen got a bill through committee Thursday that would require the state to document and report to the Legislature on fatal traffic accidents in highway construction work zones.
McFadyen’s bill would require the Colorado Department of Transportation to report on whether those killed were CDOT employees or contractors and any measures CDOT implements to avoid recurring fatalities.
Denver Public Works Press Release
Denver Public Works Wastewater Management Division will be installing a storm sewer underneath eastbound 6th Avenue between Hudson Street and Eudora Street. The project will begin at the intersection of eastbound 6th Avenue and Hudson Street and will proceed west on eastbound 6th Avenue to Eudora Street. The work will begin January 18, 2010 and will be finished in late July 2010. The need for this storm sewer installation was identified in the Storm Sewer Master Plan.
BT Construction will be the contractor on the job and will be installing a storm sewer pipe up to 42 inches in diameter.
Due to the expansiveness of this project, a full lane closure of portions of eastbound 6th Avenue will be closed between the hours of 7:30 am and 3:30 pm, with one lane open outside this timeframe. This will be a moving closure meaning that the closure will begin at Hudson Street and move west, ending at the intersection of eastbound 6th Avenue and Eudora Street. Adequate signage will be in place alerting drivers of the project and detour.
The public’s patience and cooperation during construction is greatly appreciated.
The Memphis Business Journal reports that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ November producer price index shows a rise in construction material costs, which could mean a continued uptick in prices heading into 2010.
The low cost of materials had been one positive during the slowdown that the commercial construction industry has been experiencing the past year.
But Inputs to construction industries, a weighted average of all materials used by contractors, rose 0.6% from October to November, according to Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America. They had fallen 2.3% in the past 12 months, and were flat over the past three months.
“Public agencies and private owners contemplating construction projects should treat today’s figures as a warning shot,” he says. “Prices for many materials have stopped falling and are poised for increases.”
Go to the Memphis Business Journal to see the entire article.
Associated General Contractors Press Release
1,900 Construction Jobs Added in Those Five Areas While 1.1 Million Workers Lose Jobs Nationwide As Employment Picture Continues to Deteriorate
ARLINGTON, VA – Only five out of 337 metropolitan areas saw an increase in construction employment between October 2008 and October 2009 according to a new analysis of metropolitan area employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Meanwhile, construction employment nationally tumbled by 1.1 million jobs over the past 12 months alone, with 328 metro areas reporting losses. Construction employment was unchanged in four metros.
(Inside Lane note: The AGC table shows Colorado construction jobs down 16 percent in October compared with October 2008. You can read the entire list, with all metro areas by state, here.)
“Imagine if the entire population of greater Salt Lake City lost their jobs, because that’s basically what has happened to construction employment in America’s largest communities,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “In many communities, construction employment isn’t just contracting, it is collapsing.”
Simonson noted that Reno-Sparks, NV again had the largest percentage decline with a 32 percent drop in construction employment. Other cities with large percentage declines in construction employment included Kokomo, IN (31 percent); Redding, CA (30 percent); El Centro, CA (29 percent); and the Cleveland, OH area (28 percent). Simonson added that the Phoenix metro area lost the most construction jobs (33,000); followed by Atlanta (24,700); and Las Vegas-Paradise, NV (24,500).
In comparison, only one community saw double-digit job gains. Columbus, IN again led the nation in construction job growth with a 20 percent increase, totaling 400 added construction jobs. Four other cities saw increases in construction employment, Anderson, IN (6 percent); Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA (5 percent); Tulsa, OK (3 percent); and the Davenport, IA area (1 percent). Those five communities combined added only 1,900 construction jobs over the past twelve months.
“Getting construction workers back on the job will provide a significant economic boost to virtually every community in America,” said Stephen E. Sandherr, the association’s chief executive officer. “The lesson for Washington ought to be clear: we should be building our way out of the country’s current bleak employment picture.”
Sandherr urged Congress and the Administration to include new construction and infrastructure investments as the core component of any new measures designed to address an employment market that has left over 10 percent of Americans, and 18.7 percent of construction workers, unemployed.
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