Rural regions feel stimulus shot more than urban areas
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Rural regions felt the injection of stimulus funds more than populous areas, according to a report by the Reason Foundation. That's because for smaller states, economic stimulus funds can account for more than 40% of their annual highway budgets, while in states like New York and Texas, such funds account for about 14% of highway spending. Bloomberg (9/3)
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$451M hospital coming to Camp Pendleton in California
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base in Southern California is getting a new $451 million hospital and 1,500-space parking garage to accommodate a staff of about 2,100 and about 1,850 daily outpatients. The project will be completed in the next four years by Clark Construction and McCarthy Builders. San Diego Union-Tribune (9/2)
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Kentucky, Indiana say tolls will pay for most of $4.1B bridge job
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Kentucky and Indiana transportation authorities believe the states can pay for most of a $4.1 billion Ohio River bridge project with tolls and have dismissed a call to delay the work. The two-bridge project's $2.2 billion to $3.3 billion price tag will be paid for with tolls, with the rest of the funds coming from traditional tax sources. The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Ky.) (9/2)
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Operations agreement moves U.S. 35 toll road forward
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
The West Virginia Parkways Authority and Division of Highways have agreed to jointly operate a roughly 32-mile stretch of a planned U.S. 35 toll road. An engineering and traffic review is expected this fall, when the state will open bids to design and build the highway. The Gazette (Charleston, W.Va.) (9/2)
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Atlanta tests "congestion pricing" with $110M grant
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
American City Business Journals (9/2)
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Analysis: U.S. hasn't decoupled from other rich economies
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Gross domestic product data showing the economies of several rich countries, notably Germany, growing much faster than the U.S. economy have spawned theories about the cause for this disparity. Most of those theories contain holes, according to The Economist. The best explanation is that the U.S. recovery is further along than that of other industrialized nations, and its companies have replenished inventory and production stock. "America's economy may have some unique troubles, but its fortunes are still strongly tied to the rest of the rich world," The Economist notes. The Economist (9/2)
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Recovery Act funds 15,000 road projects but leaves public unmoved
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
President Barack Obama kicked off the summer with an appearance at an Ohio road project that was intended to showcase the nation's path to recovery through federal stimulus funds. But with economic growth remaining weak and unemployment figures staying at dismal levels, Obama's economic recovery efforts have left much of the public unmoved by summer's end. "We agreed that many of the things that would improve the economy fastest were unglamorous measures ... many of which don't come with Recovery Act signs or easily identifiable links to the act," said Christina Romer, who is leaving her post as White House economic adviser. "It has been hard for people to see what the act has done." NPR.org (9/3)
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Unemployment rises but job growth is better than forecast
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
The nation's unemployment rate climbed in July as fewer companies hired workers and more people started looking for work. The Labor Department reported private employers added 67,000 new jobs last month, down from July's upwardly revised total of 107,000. Still, the growth in employment was greater than expected. Reuters (9/3)
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Contractors harnessing multi-purpose BIM technology
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Architects and engineers have long used Building Information Modeling technology, but contractors are increasingly harnessing BIM for their own ends. BIM helps contractors manage work schedules, ensure accurate materials orders and resolve design issues, among other things. St. Louis Post-Dispatch (9/3)
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Carbon-eating cement could clean up construction work
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
British researchers have developed a recipe for carbon-negative cement, using magnesium silicates instead of carbon-intensive limestone. The "green concrete" would reduce the construction industry's environmental impact by 1,763 pounds of CO2 for every ton of cement used, experts say. Bloomberg Businessweek (9/2)
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White House has no plans for new stimulus injection
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
The Obama administration doesn't have another giant stimulus spending package up its sleeve. According to spokesman Robert Gibbs, the White House "will continue to look at and take steps that are...targeted in nature to help continue the recovery and to help create an environment where the private sector is adding jobs." But a massive injection of stimulus funds isn't one of those steps. CBS News (9/2)
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Source: EPA is planning more rules to curb carbon emissions
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to unveil a number of regulations intended to control the emissions of heat-trapping gases, but these rules won't have the same impact as congressional action on climate change, a White House official said. "With legislation, you almost certainly get more emissions reductions than you get with existing authorities" that the EPA can apply under the Clean Air Act, the official said. However, the EPA's climate guidelines would bring a measure of certainty that businesses need, the official added. Reuters (9/2)
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Construction jobs drop in 276 of 337 metro areas
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Construction employment declined in 276 out of 337 metropolitan areas between July 2009 and July 2010, according to AGC's analysis of federal employment data. The employment figures demonstrate the widespread decline in demand for construction services that continues to outpace stimulus-funded work, AGC noted. Read more.
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Consensus growing; ConsensusDOCS gains 5 new coalition members
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
In July, five leading construction industry associations joined the ConsensusDOCS Coalition: Women Construction Owners & Executives, USA, the Door and Hardware Institute, the National Ground Water Association, the American Society of Professional Estimators and the Construction Specifications Institute. Learn more at www.ConsensusDOCS.org.
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SmartBrief will not be published Monday
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
In observance of Labor Day in the U.S., SmartBrief will not be published Monday, Sept. 6. Publication will resume Tuesday.
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Joseph Joubert,French essayist
AGC SmartBrief Newsfeed
03 Sep 2010 12:28:57 CDT
Genius begins great works; labor alone finishes them.
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