HOUSTON — The North Harris campus of Lone Star College has acquired two office buildings located near Houston Northwest Medical Center in Houston. The buildings will be used to expand the college’s nursing program. Additions will include a nursing lab, a computer lab, a library and a student study area. A simulation lab is also being planned. The college and the medical center have a 23-year history of working together, with students rotating through the medical center. Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin in October, with completion anticipated in May 2010.
CARLSBAD, CALIF. — Construction is underway for the $86 million renovation of Carlsbad High School, which is located at 3557 Lancer Way in Carlsbad. The project includes construction of a new stadium and 11 new permanent education structures. The first phase, which includes the stadium, involves the demolition of the existing stadium and the development of a $13.6 million, 3,900-seat athletic stadium with aluminum bleachers, a synthetic track and field area, and a 10,000-square-foot building housing locker rooms, restrooms and concessions. Completion of the first phase is slated for spring 2010. The second phase includes the construction of one- and two-story education buildings comprising 90,000 square feet of classroom, performing arts, vocational education lab and food service space. Completion of the entire project is scheduled for fall 2011. McCarthy Building Companies Inc. is serving as general contractor; Perkins+Will is providing architectural services for the project.
INDIANAPOLIS — Rolls-Royce has completed development of a 42,000-square-foot Regional Customer Training Center in Indianapolis. The center provides services to civil and defense aerospace, energy and marine customers. The project represents the fifth Rolls-Royce facility in Indianapolis, and features office, laboratory and classroom space.
ST. PAUL, MINN. — Minneapolis-based Opus Northwest has been selected to design and develop a 180,000-square-foot athletic and recreation center on the main campus of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. Representing the largest expansion in the school’s history, plans for the Anderson Athletic and Recreation Complex include a 2,000-seat basketball and volleyball arena; an aquatics center; a new field house with a 200-meter indoor track; fitness and weight training areas; and classroom and lab facilities. Construction is scheduled to commence in May, with completion expected in 2010. Opus Architects & Engineers is handling the design with assistance from Hastings-Chivetta of St. Louis. Additionally, the university has proposed a 240,000-square-foot student center that would also be designed and constructed by Opus. If approved, the project would break ground fall 2010 and deliver early in 2012.
CHINA LAKE, CALIF. — Barnhart Inc. and Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest are developing the $63.7 million Weapons and Armament Technology Center at Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS) in China Lake. The 170,000-square-foot project comprises state-of-the-art laboratories and supporting administration offices. Designed by KMA Architects, the project is slated to achieve LEED Silver certification. The center will include a dividable 335-seat conference room, secure work areas and fully equipped transient office workspaces. The grounds will offer Navy exhibits, including an F-18A fighter jet, and various Navy missile armaments developed at NAWS China Lake in addition to parking for 700 vehicles.
CHERRY HILL, N.J. — Congregation Beth El has sold its 73,500-square-foot property, which encompasses a synagogue and a school campus, to Impacting Your World Ministries for $5.05 million. Congregation Beth El will move from the property, located at 2901 Chapel Ave. in Cherry Hill, to a new location in Voorhees, N.J. Jim Scott and Marc Isdaner of Philadelphia-based Colliers Lanard & Axilbund represented the seller. Mount Laurel, N.J.-based NAI Mertz’s Jeffrey Licht represented the buyer.
WARROAD, MINN. — Kraus-Anderson Construction has been selected to provide construction services for a $31 million port-of-entry border station along the United States/Canada border in Warroad. Construction began last summer and is scheduled for completion in February 2010. The LEED Silver-certified facility is owned by the United States General Services Administration, and it will utilize a geothermal heating system comprising 108 deep wells to circulate water with stored heat to efficiently maintain temperatures. Additional sustainable features include a green roof and rainwater collection for building irrigation.
FAIRVIEW, TEXAS — Construction is set to begin for the new Fairview Town Hall for the city of Fairview. The project, consisting of a 24,000-square-foot facility, will be located on 5 acres within The Village at Fairview, one component of Dallas-based MGHerring Group’s mixed-use project located at U.S. Highway 75 and Stacy Road. The new town hall will house Fairview’s operations department, as well as the new police station. The current town hall, located at 500 S. Highway 5, will remain in use as a fire station and public works department. Construction will begin in May, with completion scheduled for spring 2010. The project is being designed by Garland, Texas-based Ron Hobbs Architects. In addition, MGHerring Group has donated a 1.4-acre land parcel within The Village Fairview for the construction of the new Collin County headquarters of the Circle Ten Council of the Boy Scouts of America. The two-story, 13,240-square-foot building will include a Scout Shop retail store, meeting rooms and office space. Completion of the project is scheduled for early 2010 and will coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America. The Village at Fairview is being developed concurrently with The Village at Allen by MGHerring …
NEW YORK CITY — The New York City office of HOK has been chosen by the New York City School Construction Authority (SCA) to design a new school in Jamaica, Queens. Public School/Intermediate School 48Q will be a 93,400-square-foot school campus that will house pre-kindergarten through eighth grade students. The school will comprise a five-story, L-shaped “Learning Block” building that will house 32 classrooms and a library, as well as a four-story “Activities Block” building that will house an auditorium, a gymnasium and a cafeteria. The $52.5 million project will be one of the first schools in the city designed to meet the New York City Green Schools Rating System, a sustainable building guideline system created by the CSA. Completion of the project is scheduled for September 2011. The new school will be replacing an existing 1930s-era school, which will be preserved and converted into offices for the New York City Department of Education.
SUNRISE, FLA. — Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Stiles Construction has broken ground on the 109,000-square-foot Public Safety Complex at 10440 W. Oakland Park Blvd. in Sunrise. The $30 million property will serve as the headquarters for the city’s police and fire departments. The complex, slated for delivery in March 2011, encompasses a 17,850-square-foot fire station with three apparatus bays, offices, training rooms and a full dormitory. A 4,900-square-foot energy plant will also be constructed adjacent to the property. Winter Park, Fla.-based Architectural Design Group provided design services.