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June 13, 2015 • Vol. IX • No. 12 • 470 Maryland Drive • Ft. Washington, PA 19034 • 215/885-2900 • Toll Free 800-523-2200 • Fax 215/885-2910
Inside
Total Makeover Thrusts Loop 303 Into New Era By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT
RDO Celebrates New Texas Facility.. .16
Drumcutter Aids in Paradise Valley Job...36
Ad space available!
See Page 21
Table of Contents ............4 Air Compressors, Generators & Light Towers Section ........43-47 Paving Section ..........57-65 Auction Section ........68-80 Business Calendar ........77 Advertisers Index ..........78
Four years ago, the Loop 303 freeway near Phoenix was an outdated two-lane highway with limited areas to pass and ill-placed traffic signals and stops signs. It was, said Doug Nintzel, spokesman of the Arizona Department of Transportation, “slow going and frustrating for local residents in the growing region about 20 miles west of downtown Phoenix.” But today that’s all history. Due to 20-year extension on a 2004 Regional Transportation Plan extending a half cent sales tax combined with federal and state funds, Loop 303 has undergone a complete makeover, bringing the old highway into the new era. “We consider Loop 303, anywhere from I-17 down to I-10, to be a freeway that has now been constructed ahead of the development curve in the West Valley,” said Nintzel. “To go from a twolane rural style highway to a modern, access-controlled urban freeway in a matter of about four years now, has been a remarkable achievement. The Maricopa
Due to the 20-year extension on a 2004 Regional Transportation Plan extending a half cent sales tax combined with federal and state funds, Loop 303 has undergone a complete makeover, bringing the old highway into the new era.
Association of Governments, as the region’s metropolitan planning organization, set the final schedule for getting this done. ADOT took that blueprint, and working with our team of contractors, has turned
Loop 303 into a big cog in the West Valley’s economic development engine. It’s great to drive on something like that.” The makeover began with a stretch of Loop 303 that did not
exist — a 14-mi. (22.5 km) segment that crosses undeveloped desert land, between Interstate 17 in north Phoenix and heading west into Peoria. see FREEWAY page 56
Construction Employment Rises in April Construction employment expanded in 232 metro areas, declined in 66 and was stagnant in 60 between April 2014 and April 2015, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said even as contractors in many parts of the country continue to expand their payroll, many firms remain concerned about the potential impacts of federal transportation funding shortfalls. “Demand, particularly from private sector
clients, has rebounded enough that many firms have been steadily expanding their headcount during the past twelve months,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But construction employment is still below prior peak levels in most areas, as firms worry about the fate of federal transportation funding.” Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash., added the largest number of construction jobs in the past year (12,600 jobs, 17 percent), followed by Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colo. (10,800
jobs, 12 percent), Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine, Calif. (7,800 jobs, 10 percent) and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif. (7,800 jobs, 7 percent). The largest percentage gains occurred in Wenatchee, Wash. (32 percent, 600 jobs), Atlantic City-Hammonton, N.J. (24 percent, 1,100 jobs), Visalia-Porterville, Calif. (21 percent, 900 jobs), Dothan, Ala. (20 percent, 500 jobs) and Lake Charles, La. (20 percent, 2,700 jobs). The largest job losses from April 2014 to see JOBS page 77