Published Nationally ®
Southeast Edition
October 21 2009
$3.00
Vol. XXII • No. 21
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Inside
Work Begins on Phase II of I-40 Interchange By Angela B. Hurni CEG CORRESPONDENT
Yancey Celebrates 95th Anniversary…10
Nortrax Opens Fort Meyers Facility in Style…18
Alex Lyon Holds Two-Day in Kissimmee…52
Table of Contents ............4
On July 9 officials in Nashville, Tenn., broke ground on Phase II of the Interstate 40 White Bridge Road Interchange Improvement Project. Phase I was finished during the summer 2005. Since then, the project has been stalled for four years because of lack of funding. Now, the $32million project is being totally funded through money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which the President signed into law in February. Many dignitaries, including Gov. Phil Bredesen and Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) Commissioner Gerald Nicely, were on hand for the groundbreaking ceremony. “This project will enhance Nashville’s already excellent transportation system,” said Bredesen at the ceremony. “It will improve access to Interstate 40 and Briley Parkway and will contribute to continued economic development in West Nashville.”
By Bill Kaczor
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) Gov.
Business Calendar ........38 Parts Section............40-41 Auction Section ......49-55 Advertisers Index ..........54
Bell & Associates Construction is the prime contractor for the $32 million project. The company has all-terrain cranes by Lorain hard at work on the job site.
The contract also includes construction of two flyover ramps to and from I-40 and Briley Parkway, plus the replacement of the White Bridge Road Bridge over I-40. In addition, three noise barriers and five retaining walls will be built and a pedestrian bridge located just west of the interchange will be replaced. “The project is just over a mile long,” explained Jeremy Mitchell, project manager with Bell & Associates. There will be “three lanes west and three lanes east on I-40 and two auxiliary lanes for the new ramps.” The Interstate will be constructed of asphalt, and the ramps will be concrete paving. There will be more than 20,000 cu. yds. (15,200 cu. m) of concrete used on this project. The two major bridges being built are the White Bridge Road Bridge and the pedestrian bridge. The White Bridge Road Bridge, measuring just over 1,500 ft. (457 m) long, is being constructed of single-column hammerhead piers and structural steel plate girders. The pedestrian bridge is approximately 230 ft. (70 m) long and see TDOT page 40
Federal Report Backs Fla.’s Industry Lobbies Approach to Stimulus Cash for Common Sense in Reform
Truck & Trailer Section .... Charlie Crist and his “stimulus czar’’ said ..................................25-27 Oct. 9 that a recent federal report supports Crushing, Screening & Recycling Section ....31-37
Bell & Associates Construction LP, Brentwood, Tenn., is the prime contractor for Phase II, which includes a new interchange at I40 and Briley Parkway/White Bridge Road/Robertson Road. The company also constructed the $43-million Phase I.
Florida’s go-slow approach to spending federal recovery money earmarked for highway projects and schools. Even so, Florida’s overall stimulus spending is a bit ahead of schedule, said czar Don Winstead, whose official title is special adviser to the governor on economic stimulus. Federal officials in February said they expected the state to spend about 20 percent of its estimated $15 billion in stimulus money by the end of September. “I think we will be ahead of that sched-
ule,’’ Winstead said. “We are seeing rapid deployment and we’ll see over the next couple of months additional rapid deployment of some of the larger projects.’’ In letters to state lawmakers and members of Florida’s congressional delegation, Crist cited a Government Accountability Office report that focuses on stimulus spending for education, transportation and Medicaid. Winstead spoke about it in a teleconference with reporters. In August, U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, a Minnesota Democrat who chairs the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, sent Crist a letter chiding Florida for ranking last in spending stimulus money designated for highway projects and urged him to “refocus your efforts.’’ see STIMULUS page 22
By Giles Lambertson CEG CORRESPONDENT
Health care reform in the United States has been beaten nearly to death this year by advocates and critics alike. Yet as the debate moves into October, the final shape of “reform” remains elusive and elastic with construction industry executives anxious about its impact on their companies. Any change in the system definitely will have impact on contractors and a sweeping change could upend smaller firms — and most construction companies are small-to-medium-sized. The truth of the matter is the reform model in which government would provide most health care services would dramatically see REFORM page 24