| City Crossing Files for Bankruptcy
The $2 billion City Crossing project in Henderson has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The 6 million-sq-ft mixed-use development being built by Las Vegas-based Plise Development & Construction broke ground last year on a 126-acre site at St. Rose Parkway and Executive Airport Drive. Roughly $30 million in site improvements, including grading, utilities and roads, are currently underway with Chaparral Contracting, a Plise subsidiary, as the general contractor.
Phase one plans call for 175,000 sq ft of retail space, an eight-story, 215,000-sq-ft office building, 184 apartments and a 160-room boutique hotel. Vertical construction on the 50-acre first phase was originally expected to start this summer with completion by early 2010. But that timeline will likely be extended by six months or more depending on the capital market’s response to the bankruptcy.
On June 2, City Crossing 1 LLC, a Plise controlled entity, filed to reorganize $180 million in debt. The project, which consists of 15 parcels, is secured by raw land near the Henderson Executive Airport. Its current appraised value is $250 million, say company officials. But the housing market implosion has tightened credit markets and devalued real estate-backed loans.
“We’ve been working to refinance the existing debt at City Crossing over the last several months,” says Mitchell Stipp, Plise’s chief operating officer. “All of our lenders, except for one local community bank, have been willing to work with us and negotiate mutually acceptable terms.”
The lender in question is Community Bank of Nevada, a subsidiary of Las Vegas-based Community Bancorp (Nasdaq: CBON). The firm’s stock price has dropped 77.5% since its 52-week high.
Community Bank of Nevada has lent about $30 million toward the development of City Crossing. City Crossing has seven lenders, with 1st National Bank of Nevada listed as its single largest debtor at $70 million.
Plise will self-finance the project’s remaining site upgrades from cash reserves. It still intends to build the 41-building City Crossing as originally envisioned. Plise has been negotiating with a national firm about becoming a possible development joint-venture partner.
“We are not stopping development. We have sufficient capital to fund this work,” Stipp says. “We expect to have the debt reorganized within the next three to five months.”
By Tony Illia
Ritz-Carlton Readies Tahoe Timeshare Project
The Ritz-Carlton Club, Lake Tahoe is accepting pre-construction sales reservations for its 78 ski-in/ski-out fractional ownership residences, as part of a larger renovation of the Northstar Resort.
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| Ritz-Carlton Club, Lake Tahoe and Northstar Resort |
Designed by Boulder, Colo.-based Oz Architecture, the project is targeted to open in late 2009. It will offer two-, three- and four-bedroom residences ranging from approximately 1,423 to 2,434 sq ft with interior designs by Boulder, Colo.-based The Ranch House inspired by Washoe Indian influences. Fractional prices start in the low $200,000s to more than $600,000 per deeded, one-twelfth interest.
Club amenities include a heated pool and whirlpool hot tubs, a 21,000 sq-ft spa, multiple restaurants and fitness center. A new gondola is also being developed to transport visitors to the Village at Northstar.
Burke & Associates Keep Busy
Burke & Associates has recently begun construction of the new Alexander Library and Park complex in North Las Vegas. The innovative $3.3 million, 16,400-sq-ft library will include a computer facility for patrons, meeting rooms and a children’s library wing. The adjacent two acre public park will include tot lots, shade structures, paved and lighted walking paths and a demonstration garden.
Working together with Lucchesi Galati Architects, this project is scheduled for completion in early 2009.
Burke has also recently completed St. Bridget’s Catholic Church’s new church sanctuary. Built on the site of their previous church at the corner of 14th Street and Stewart Avenue, this 17,000-sq-ft building features a new masonry exterior, tile roof, marble altar and perpetual adoration chapel inside the facility. St. Bridget’s history was retained by installing eight of the church’s original stained glass windows, some of which were at least 60 years old. This new facility can now accommodate up to 650 worshippers for services.
JVC Architects was the project architect on the $4.5 million improvement project.
JVC Architects to Design CCSD Buildings
JVC Architects is designing modern multipurpose buildings for C.C. Ronnow and Bertha Ronzone elementary schools. The Clark County School District contracted JVC to create plans for the 8,000 sq ft stand alone buildings with a 300-person occupancy. The buildings will be constructed on existing campuses and include state-of-the-art lighting and kitchen facilities. C.C. Ronnow is at 1100 Lena St. and Bertha Ronzone at 5701 Stacey Ave. Cobblestone Construction is the general contractor for the projects that commenced in late spring 2008.
Sterling Construction Co. Inc.’s RHB subsidiary to Widen U.S. 93
Sterling Construction Co. Inc.’s recently acquired Nevada-based RHB subsidiary, was the apparent low bidder on a $46.3 million project for the Nevada Department of Transportation. The project, which is scheduled to commence in the third quarter of 2008 with a contract duration of approximately one year, calls for the widening of 17 miles of U.S. 93, running from Searchlight, Nev. to the California border.
Las Vegas Strip Deaths Prompt Picket Lines
By Tony Illia
Outraged workers at the massive CityCenter project walked off the job in protest last month after an accident killed another worker, the sixth in 16 months.
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| Workers from CityCenter and Cosmopolitan picketed briefly in response to another death at CityCenter. |
Photo courtesy Tony Illia |
They also walked off the job at another, adjacent construction project on the Las Vegas Strip, the Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino. Both projects quickly resumed construction the next day after union demands were agreed upon during discussions with Perini Building Co., the prime contractor on both projects. New York-based Tishman Construction Corp. is project manager on CityCenter.
In a written statement, vice president of human resources and risk management Doug Mure says “recent incidents on our Las Vegas projects are a major concern, and we are committed to collaboration with the building trades, subcontractors and suppliers to continuously improve our safety efforts for all of our operations.”
On May 31, Henderson resident Dustin Tarter, 39, was oiling the counterweight track system to a Terex-Comedil 35-ton hammerhead tower crane when he got stuck and was crushed to death, says Scott Allison, Clark County Fire Dept. spokesman. State law requires crane owner-operators to maintain and inspect the tower cranes throughout the course of construction. CityCenter has a total of 14 tower cranes.
On June 2nd, CityCenter workers were sent home after word of a strike circulated. About 100 union members responded by picketing that night and the next day in front of CityCenter and the Cosmopolitan.
The union called for immediate worksite safety assessments, on-site OSHA-10 training for all workers and full access to the jobsite by union officials and safety directors, some of which Perini says they had already provided before the strike.
CityCenter has been averaging around 4,500 tradesmen during the last month on three shifts, six to seven days a week, with portions operating 24 hours a day. It has been spending over a $1 million a day in payroll.
The 2,998-room Cosmopolitan development has had two construction-related deaths since breaking ground in October 2005.
Lake Mead Crossing Phase I Opens
Target Corporation has completed construction of its 151,000-sq-ft store in the Lake Mead Crossing retail center located at the northwest corner of Lake Mead Parkway and Water Street in downtown Henderson.
Lake Mead Crossing is the largest retail power center currently under development in the city of Henderson, according to Juliet Cos., the project’s developer and general contractor. Other tenants include Ross and PETsMART.
Lake Mead Crossing also serves as the anchor and catalyst for the changing face of Henderson’s Downtown Water Street District redevelopment area. Lake Mead Crossing broke ground in May 2007.
Inland Western Retail Real Estate Trust, Inc. is the equity partner in the joint venture.
CORE Awarded Work Camp and Completed Office Park
CORE Construction-Nevada has been awarded the contract for the Indian Springs Correctional Center Work Camp. The company has recently begun construction on the project at 1 Cold Creek Rd.
The State of Nevada Public Works Board contracted CORE to complete the facility for the Nevada State Department of Corrections. The six single-story, masonry and steel buildings total 119,300 sq ft on a 35-acre parcel and requires special security implements throughout.
Construction of the approximately $36.1 million project is scheduled for completion in March 2010. Reno, Nev.-based Ganthner Melby, LLC is the project’s architect of record.
United Construction Awarded $14.1 Million Southwest Gas Campus
United Construction has been awarded a $14.1 million contract to build Southwest Gas Corporation’s new Southern Nevada Campus, located on the southwest corner of Centennial Parkway and Statz Street, in North Las Vegas.
Named the Northeast Centennial Operations Center, the project is situated on 10.43 acres near the Las Vegas Motor Speedway and will consist of two concrete tilt-up buildings totaling 101,981 sq ft. The first building will consist of 73,000 sq ft of office space over two stories, 21,000 sq ft of warehouse space and a mezzanine. The second building will consist of 7,049 sq ft of industrial space used for vehicle maintenance. A storage yard and outdoor living demonstration area will also be built.
The project broke ground in early May and is scheduled for completion April 2009.
Upon completion, the campus will be the primary facility for Southwest Gas Corp. in Southern Nevada and will house approximately 400 employees. Southwest Gas Corp. is the developer of the project and Gary Guy Wilson is the architect of record.
Tivoli Village at Queensridge Goes Vertical
Work has been completed on the first portion of the underground parking structure at Tivoli Village at Queensridge. The project is now going vertical with the steel framework for the first buildings within the 29-acre project.
Phase one is expected to open spring 2009. The general contractor for Tivoli Village at Queensridge is Level CM, an affiliate of Executive Home Builders.
The design is by Development Design Group, Inc. of Baltimore, in conjunction with DGI of Nevada.
The heart of the property is comprised of 15 one- to four-story buildings with the majority atop a three-level concrete parking garage with spaces for approximately 3,400 cars. The buildings will be formed of reinforced concrete and structural steel frames with facades formed by stone applied to a structural substrate.
By the time Tivoli Village is complete, workers will have poured 120,000 cu yds of concrete. The project also includes 4 million lbs of structural steel and 7.5 million lbs of reinforcing steel bars.
Many functions such as deliveries and waste management will be largely contained beneath Tivoli Village on the lowest level of the parking garage, primarily out of the general sight of the public. Service elevators will transport goods and refuse between a truck circuit below the shops and businesses.
Nigro Construction Awarded Contract for Bank of George
Nigro Construction Inc. was awarded the $1.3 million design-build contract for Bank of George’s second community bank branch, planned for the Seven Hills area. Nigro Construction broke ground on the 7,768-sq-ft branch last month.
PENTA Completes John Ascuaga’s East Tower
The PENTA Building Group has completed work of a 600-room renovation of the east tower of John Ascuaga’s Nugget. The renovation project required stripping rooms entirely and implementing new fixtures and finishes in each room. PENTA crews completed renovation of the 29-floor tower two levels at a time to ensure business was not interrupted in the process. Morris and Brown Architects provided new layouts and interior design services.
EJM Completes First Phase of Arroyo
EJM Development Co. completed Phase I of The Arroyo Corporate Center in southwest Las Vegas. Leasing has begun on the property, which is part of its 450-acre, master-planned business park, The Arroyo.
Phase I of The Arroyo Corporate Center, situated on the south side of the I-215 Beltway between Rainbow Boulevard and Buffalo Drive, comprises two Class A office buildings totaling approximately 125,000 sq ft. Each building offers fiber-optic wiring and covered parking. American International Group Inc. and Stantec Consulting Inc. are the development’s first tenants.
Martin Harris Construction served as general contractor and JMA as the architect of record. Construction began in May 2007.
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