Government

The $4-million Central Texas Technology Center, now under construction in New Braunfels, Texas, is slated for completion in March 2004. The center will provide vocational and technical training programs including welding technologies, allied construction trades, industrial manufacturing, computer technology, automotive mechanics, and nursing. Funding for the center is being supplied by a grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, the Lower Colorado River Authority, and the New Braunfels and Sequin economic development corporations.

The San Mateo County Forensics Laboratory and Coroner's Office in San Mateo, California, is included on the American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment 2003 list of "Top 10 Green Projects" which recognizes architectural design solutions that protect and enhance the environment. Designed by the San Francisco office of Hellmut, Obata + Kassabaum, the $12-million, 29,000-sf facility is a "living lab" for sustainability.

The Oakland City Council has selected developer Lennar Swinerton Group to construct a new Oakland Police Station. The current police facility will be demolished and replaced by the $160-million project, which includes 250,000-sf of police operations and office space, a 48,000-sf crime lab, an 18,200-sf property and evidence facility, and parking accommodating 900 cars. Lennar Swinerton Group is a joint venture between Lennar Partners, Swinerton Builders, and Hunter Group.

The General Services Administration and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) broke ground on the new NOAA satellite operations center on April 11, 2003. Designed by Santa Monica-based Morphosis and Einhorn Yaffee Prescott of Washington, the $61-million facility is located at the Suitland Federal Center. $50-million in high-tech equipment and $3-billion in control satellites will be housed in the new center. Construction manager for the 208,000-sf, three-building project is 3D/I. Completion is expected in 2005.

The $7-million, 17,000-sf Rosegarden Public Library will break ground this summer in San Jose, Calif. Designed by the San Francisco office of HGA Architects, the project is slated for completion by fall 2004. Using the latest techniques of sustainable design, the building will be LEED certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. It will feature an Internet cafe, community rooms, an online checkout system, and online reference services.  

The City of Coronado has selected Robbins Jorgensen Christopher (RJC) of San Diego to design its new $30-million city hall and community center complex. Construction will begin in summer of 2003 and reach completion in fall of 2004. The project is sited on 16 waterfront acres. RJC will also provide interior design and landscape architecture services.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) will expand its main office in Arlington's Virginia Square, adding 415,472 sf to its 370,000-sf campus. The $75-million development will accommodate an additional 1,100 employees. Comprised of two nine-story towers with ground-floor retail, the project is slated for completion in 2006. The FDIC will vacate leased offices in the district but will maintain its headquarters office across from the Old Executive Office Building.

Global defense contractor Northrop Grumman is constructing two new Florida facilities to support a Navy contract for additional aircraft. A $2.5-million office facility is under construction at the company's St. Augustine site. The 45,000-sf building will house administrative support services, human resources, and members of the federal Defense Contract Management Agency, which monitors aircraft performance, production, and delivery. The second planned facility will house a customer training center and a cafeteria.

The City of San Antonio broke ground in late March 2003 on the new 15,000-sf Henry A. Guerra Jr. Branch Library. Construction is slated for completion later this year. Architect for the $2,799,000 project is Sprinkle-Robley. The project cost includes $400,000 for books, magazines, newspapers, videos, DVDs, and CDs.

The Charles E. Bennett Federal Building in Jacksonville is undergoing a $24-million modernization. Housing the Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor and Housing, and Urban Development offices, the 11-story, 298,000-sf facility is slated for completion by July 2004. The Jacksonville office of Skanska USA Building is general contractor for the project.

The Alamo Heights City Council has approved plans to renovate and expand City Hall. Designed by architectural firm Bartholomew & Co., the $4.5-million project will be developed in five phases over three years, expanding the existing 9,000-sf complex to 20,000 sf, including a 12,000-sf fire station and community meeting room. Construction is slated to begin in June 2003. The new facility will be ADA code compliant and energy efficient, featuring a geothermal air-conditioning system.  

The National Archives Building, built in 1935, is undergoing a $110-million renovation that will restore the facility's rotunda and install fiber-optic lighting systems and high-security vaults. Mechanical and electrical systems will be upgraded, and head space in the exhibit galleries will be created by the removal of several floors, shrinking the building's total space from 1.4-million sf to 900,000 sf.

The Alameda County Health Service Agency will break ground in late March 2003 on the second of three planned buildings at the Creekside Plaza office park in San Leandro. Developed by Creekside Associates LLC, a subsidiary of The Innisfree Companies of Sausalito, the 50,041-sf leased building will house the Health Finance Agency, Emergency Medical Services and Family Health Services upon completion in early 2004. The departments to be consolidated are currently located in offices in Oakland and San Leandro.

The National Research Council (NRC) is planning the permanent home of the new National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT) in Edmonton, Alberta. The $40-million facility will be created by a partnership between the Government of Canada through the NRC, the Government of Alberta, and the University of Alberta. The building will be built to a silver-level LEED certification as specified by the U.S.

The GSA, National Capital Region, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the FDA, has awarded the mid-Atlantic division of Centex Construction the $55-million contract for Phase 2A of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) Office Building at the Federal Research Center in White Oak, Silver Spring, Md. The largest facility planned for the FDA campus, the six-story, 550,000-sf CDER will house laboratories, research facilities, and office space.