On March 8, 2012, the Indiana Finance Authority (IFA) issued a RFQ to design, build, finance, operate and maintain a tolled bridge facility and associated roadway and facilities (the “East End Crossing”) through a public-private partnership agreement. If this piques your interest, the Statements of Qualification are due April 9,…
Dating back to Hammurabi’s code in the early fourth millennium B.C., continuing through the development of the U.S. Constitution, and still present in today’s professional culture, a dominant theme has arisen: before any process involving participation of multiple individuals or entities with differing goals can be successfully administered, a fixed…
Jonathan Kaiman of the Los Angeles Times reported recently on a developer, Broad Sustainable Building, that constructed a thirty-story building in Changsha, China, in 15 days (not including the foundation and tenant improvements) with the help of extensive prefabrication. The fascinating time-lapse video of the construction of the building is…
The 21st edition of Pillsbury’s Newsletter: Perspectives on Real Estate features articles on green leasing, mineral rights, avoiding construction project failures and California’s post redevelopment agency landscape. Articles include: “Green” Leasing: Landlord and Tenant Perspectives Scratching the Surface: Understanding the Potential Impact of Minerals Rights on Your Texas Loan Avoiding…
You could be forgiven if you’ve missed some of the news concerning the new Tappan Zee Bridge project. This project is very much on Governor Cuomo’s front-burner and is moving right along at an impressive pace. Here is the Reader’s Digest version of some (relatively) current events. In February, four…
On February 21, 2012, the AGC announced that construction employment remains below peak levels in 329 out of 337 metro areas. Not surprising, the hardest hit metro areas all took great advantage of the housing boom until the economic recession wiped out the demand – Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ, Lake Havasu City-Kingman,…
The construction industry is abuzz with talk of alternative funding mechanisms, specifically Public-Private Partnerships, aka PPP, aka P3s. The AGC PPP Task Force recently developed a White Paper to outline issues that contractors will confront with PPPs. Contractors should be knowledgeable about PPPs – not just from a contractor’s perspective…
New York State’s Appellate Division, First Department, in VOOM HD Holdings LLC v. EchoStar Satellite L.L.C., recently adopted strict federal standards with respect to a party’s obligations to preserve documents prior to litigation. These standards were derived from the landmark Zubulake and Pension Committee opinions of Judge Shira Scheindlin of…
An analysis performed by The Association of General Contractors reveals that Construction company employment rose in 28 states and the District of Columbia in 2011. While the increase in numbers is certainly encouraging, the AGC cautions that it is “too early to conclude that the industry is on a steady…
On January 17, 2012, the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, First Department, declined to follow and expressly overruled the insurance rule adopted in DiGuglielmo v. Travelers Prop. Cas., 6 A.D.3d 344 (N.Y. App. Div. 1st Dep’t 2004). The DiGuglielmo rule stated that “[a]n insurer is…