NEW YORK CITY — CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) has arranged the relocation of the Hunter College School of Social Work, located in New York City. The graduate school plans to sell its current building and land, located at 129 E. 79th St., to locally based The Brodsky Organization for $65 million. Brodksy will then construct a new facility for the school at Third Avenue, between 118th and 119th streets in East Harlem, at cost, receiving a lump-sum fee for administrative expenses. The new facility will rise eight stories and total 142,000 square feet, making it 32,000 square feet larger that the school’s current building. The building will be located on land currently owned by The Lois and Samuel J. Silberman Fund, in conjunction with the New York Community Trust. The state of New York has already appropriated $95 million to help complete the construction of the new building. CBRE’s Mary Ann Tighe, Stephen Siegel, Darcy Stacom and Joan Meixner represented Hunter College in the transaction. New York Community Trust was represented by Ira Schuman of Studley. Construction for the new facility will begin next summer, with completion expected in June 2011.
CLARK COUNTY, CALIF. — BJG Architecture + Engineering has broken ground for the construction of Clark County Fire Station #33, which is located on the Las Vegas Convention Center campus in Las Vegas. The $5.3 million, 14,000-square-foot facility includes a fourth bay for service vehicles. The additional space will also include an area designated for fire prevention personnel and future development. The station’s first two specialized engines will equipped to handle chemical, biological and radiological hazards and paramedic rescue. The project is being built through a partnership between Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), Clark County and the fire department. Clark County will fund the property and lease the facility from the LVCVA.
NASHVILLE, TENN. — Nashville-based R.C. Matthews has broken ground on a 90,000-square-foot building on the campus of Belmont University in Nashville. When completed in June 2010, the $30 million property will house the university’s pharmacy and physical therapy schools. The building will also include expansion space for the nursing and occupational therapy and the social work and psychology programs. A four-level parking garage will be constructed under the building. Earl Swensson Associates provided design work for the property.
ATLANTA — The Georgia State University Foundation has purchased 3.8 acres at 188 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Atlanta from an undisclosed party for $6.6 million. The school plans to construct a football practice facility on the site in anticipation of its new football team. The property will include a 100-yard artificial turf field and a 50-yard natural grass field. Space for offices, meeting rooms, a locker room and a weight room will be incorporated into the design. A groundbreaking date has not been set, but officials hope to deliver the property by next fall. The Georgia State Panthers will start Division 1-AA play in 2010.
ST. LOUIS — St. Louis-based Clayco, as designer/builder, has broken ground on the new 150,875-square-foot Stephen F. and Camilla T. Brauer Hall building on the northeast corner of Washington University’s Danforth Campus in St. Louis. The $60 million building will be devoted to state-of-the-art teaching, and research in energy and environmental engineering for Washington University’s School of Engineering & Applied Science. When the facility is completed in 2010, it will house the School of Engineering’s Department of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering. Additionally, the building will provide space for the International Center for Advanced Renewable Energy & Sustainability, and the Department of Biomedical Engineering. The four-story structure, which has been designed to achieve LEED-Gold certification, will include 34 labs and a vivarium. Stephen F. and Camilla T. Brauer Hall is the first phase of the School of Engineering’s master plan that calls for approximately 600,000 square feet of new space.
ROBBINSVILLE, N.J. — Cranbury, N.J.-based Sweetwater Construction Corp. has been selected to provide pre-construction and construction management services for the development of a 33,000-square-foot veterinary specialty and emergency trauma center in Robbinsville. Situated on 3 acres at 315 Robbinsville-Allentown Rd., the $9 million facility will serve primary care veterinarians throughout the region. It is replacing the existing Veterinary Surgical & Diagnostic Specialists facility, a 5,200-square-foot practice located in Millstone, N.J. The new facility, which does not have a formal name yet, will contain a Level 1 trauma center, four surgical suites, an MRI machine, a CT scanner, a radiology treatment center and quarantine areas. It will also feature separate wards for cats and dogs, a dog-walking portico, and the ability to treat farm and exotic animals. Constructed on the site of a former farmhouse, the new facility will preserve 200-year old trees presently on the property, as well as use elements of the old farmhouse in the new construction. The facility was designed by Conshohocken, Pa.-based Jeffrey L. Grogan Architects. Construction is expected to begin in spring 2009, with the facility’s grand opening scheduled for May 2010.
NEW YORK CITY — The New York City School Construction Authority has awarded Hasbrouck Heights, N.J.-based DMR Architects an $8 million contract to perform design work for the renovation of several New York City public schools. The architecture firm is also in the process of completing a 2-year, $5 million contract for the public school system under a separate contract. The design and construction phases are under way for the projects in the first contract. Construction consists of the replacement of all of the windows and masonry repair work at Clara Cardwell School (P.S. 308) in Brooklyn, as well as an upgrade to the auditorium and extensive masonry work at Lorraine Hansberry School (P.S. 118) in Queens. The schools to be renovated under the new contract were not released.
EAST SANDWICH, MASS. — Norwell, Mass.-based Acella Construction Corp. has completed construction of a new 16,000-square-foot dormitory for Riverview School in East Sandwich. Known as the Janse-Butler House, the facility will accommodate 36 middle and high school students, as well as six staff members. The dorm will also be handicap accessible. CMG Architects provided design services for the project. Riverview School is a coeducational, residential school situated on a 16-acre campus that houses 180 students with complex language, learning and cognitive disabilities.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based Aragon Construction has begun the renovation of the former Clearview Chelsea West Cinemas, located at 333 W. 23rd St. in New York City. The three-story, two-screen theater will serve as the cultural center for the School of Visual Arts (SVA). Construction will include the renovation of the existing basement; the upgrading of the theater’s mechanical systems, electrical systems and fire alarms; new screens and draperies; the installation of a state-of-the-art audio system; expanded stages; redesigned lighting; and the construction of a new lobby. Aragon is working on the renovation in conjunction with Laurence G. Jones Architects. Upon completion in January 2009, SVA will use the facility to host film screenings, lectures and other cultural programs.
FORT MYERS, FLA. — Gora/McGahey Associates in Architecture has entered the design phase on a renovation of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida. The 20,000-square-foot building was constructed in 1988 and is located at 3830 Evans Ave. in Fort Myers. The renovation will give the center an aquatic theme, and a mural will cover the walls and concrete floors. Target Builders has been selected as the general contractor.