EIFS (exterior insulating finish system) was once one of the hottest building materials on the market, then water intrusion problems signaled the demise of the way it was being used. The industry then took a hard look at means of installation and corrected those earlier problems. Beyond revising installation errors, a whole new family of cool finishes …
Restoring buildings to their original state, or at other times giving them new purpose, brings a lot of satisfaction. Our Thomas Jefferson project falls into this category. We are in the process of converting the circa 1920s hotel into 96 apartments targeted at Millennials, complete with food and retail on the ground floor. One of …
A few years ago, I wrote about the “streetwise parking” trend we are seeing, where parking fields are getting smaller and smarter. In the 4 years that have passed since that post, we are seeing more innovative parking solutions in our own projects. Two examples: Merchant’s Walk, a Whole Foods-anchored retail center that included hybrid street …
Several decades ago, in most of the larger southeastern cities, union contractors prevailed. As the market began to change toward a more open working environment, these companies formed what would be referred to as a “double-breasted operation,” where the ownership of one company was the same as the other, and yet one was union and …
While there are a number of contract forms for building services, they all sort of revolve around these four: Design and Bid. The architect prepares plans and the contractor builds. Fairly simple. Over the last several years, it seems the budgets for architectural design are getting tighter and thus there is not enough design money …
Your average apartment building might be changing. I’m referring to multi-family buildings that are taller than garden-style, but not so tall as a high rise–generally five stories or 75’ in top elevation according to current codes. Wood is coming back into favor as a construction material for multi-family construction. As one of the oldest and …
I spent this week at ICSC‘s RECON, the gold standard annual convention for the bricks and mortar component of the retail industry. This year marked the event’s 3oth anniversary in Las Vegas. Retail feels like an old friend to me. For a decade or two when we first started building, retail construction was our mainstay. During …
Like other construction firms, we work with a lot of different companies that help us deliver. We’ve found that whether it’s construction, engineering or architecture, two things are vital: working with a firm that thinks creatively instead of always taking the textbook path, and finding the right person to work with at that firm. The …
We have been using pervious concrete paving for about 10 years now. In case you are not familiar with the product, I came across this clip that sums it up pretty well. Our success rate is pretty good, as long as we have had a decent drainage system underneath the concrete to allow the water …
Lately, we’ve been involved in several urban projects that have utilized historic tax credits. One is complete, one is almost finished, and one is just ramping up. While I feel the ins and outs of dealing with this system could easily fill a book, let me sum up our experiences with HTCs as briefly as …
Several years ago, I made the decision to build a home out from town, and moved to a beautiful spot in the country with views of a mountain range, lakes, woods and wildlife. It has been nice. I raised 3 good children here, but they are now grown and have moved on. Now my place …
There’s a talent shortage, and it’s hardly a surprise. I wrote a post about it in 2011 during the financial crisis, and with the upsurge in projects the last couple of years, it’s becoming more evident. During the crisis, folks had to leave the industry to find work to support their families. Baby Boomers are retiring, and GenXers and …