Joint Venture Wins Light Rail Work

A joint venture between Phoenix-based Sundt Construction and Stacy & Witbeck, an Alameda, Calif. company, recently won the $57.5 million contract for the construction of a light rail and storage facility for Valley Metro's light rail project.

The project is the largest single component of the new light rail system, which has a budget of $1.3 billion.

Construction of the maintenance and storage facility is expected to begin this fall. The 35-acre facility will be located near the junction of Highway 143 (Hohokam Freeway) and Loop 202 (Red Mountain Freeway) in east Phoenix and will initially house up to 40 light rail vehicles.

Firm to Design New Agua Fria High

The Orcutt/Winslow Partnership is designing the Agua Fria High School District's fourth high school in the master planned community of Verrado.

The $20.5 million, 200,000-sq.-ft. facility, funded by the Arizona School Facilities Board, will provide a real-world learning environment for 1,600 West Valley students beginning in fall 2006.

The school will have a "green" interior using Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification requirements.

Adolfson & Peterson Construction will construct the project through Arizona's construction manager at-risk method.

The 45-acre site is designed to complement Verrado's character and vision of community, by creating a public recreation facility adjacent to the school with shared athletic facilities. DMB Associates is the developer of Verrado.

Firm Picks up Tucson Work

CORE Construction Services of Arizona, Inc. was recently awarded a $10.5 million CMAR contract in Tucson with Sunnyside Unified School District No. 12 for a new elementary school totaling 54,000 sq. ft. and middle school totaling 67,700 sq. ft. The project will be designed by Mesa based EMC2 Group Architects.

U of A to Get New Parking Structure

The design-build team of Sundt Construction, Inc./the Durrant Group/Walker Parking Consultants has started construction of the $18 million Highland Avenue Parking Structure, located on the southeast corner of Highland Avenue and Mabel Street.

When complete in June 2005, the six-level concrete structure will provide 1,501 parking spaces. A prominent stairway/elevator tower and the extensive use of red brick on the fascia enhance its architectural compatibility with nearby University structures.

Detention Facility on Tap for SRP-MIC

Au' Authum Ki, a Native American-owned construction manager and general contractor based in Chandler, and Kitchell Contractors of Phoenix are joining forces on a new Detention Center Facility for the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

Au' Authum Ki / Kitchell broke ground on the new $20 million facility on Aug. 17. The facility will be located off of Osborn, east of Loop 101 in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The project includes the relocation and demolition of the Desert Eagle High School, which is on the existing 10-acre site. The new facility will house 120-bed housing units for male, female, adult and juvenile inmates. Included in the 76,000-sq.-ft. facility will be adult and juvenile booking areas, programming areas and administration.

The Au' Authum Ki / Kitchell team will complete the design/build project in September 2005. The architect for the project is DMJM Design of Phoenix.

Contractor Wins Town Work

Kitchell CEM was recently awarded a contract by the Town of Gilbert to provide construction management services for Phase I of the South Area Service Center in Gilbert, Ariz.

The project consists of approximately 40,000 sq. ft. of office and maintenance space on a 10-13 acre site, with a total project budget of $12 million. Gilbert's South Area Service Center will act as a central hub for those services the town will provide to south and east Gilbert communities. It will also provide fueling, maintenance, and storage for the fleet assigned to the facility. Construction is scheduled to begin April 2005 with project completion anticipated in early 2006.

Hotel Project Underway in Sedona

The construction of a new 77-room luxury hotel is underway in the red rocks of Sedona, including conference facilities, a full-service spa, fitness center and retail boutique.

Constructed by McCarthy Building Cos. Inc., the $17 million Sedona Rouge will be the newest addition to the Red Rock-landscape. Construction began in March 2004. The project architect is Evan Cross, with Pahana Architects in Mill Valley, Calif. Sedona Rouge is owned by Sedona Rouge LLC.