1. REI sells new, unused HQ to Facebook (BD+C)
"The facility, which focused on blending inside space with outdoors space, featured courtyards, bridges, open park space, large operable windows and garage doors, and reclaimed wood all meant to promote a healthy lifestyle for employees."
2. Adjaye Associates will design The Africa Institute in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (BD+C)
"The design will create an enclosed 343,175-sf campus with five wings between four and seven stories each, connected by a series of open-air interior courtyards that span the entire ground floor and feature fountains and landscaping with native plants."
3. Taller timber buildings approved in National Fire Protection Association code (BD+C)
"The new code is the result of a three-year process to review mass timber. Several NFPA Technical Committees with responsibility for building construction provisions developed new tall mass timber provisions."
4. Campus libraries are leaping into the future (GBBN)
"Inexperienced users think they know what academic libraries can offer. Chances are, newly arriving (and even existing) students at your institution are unaware of the vast amount of information and resources available to them through the campus library."
5. Facebook Campus Hotel a Bet on Bright Future for Business Travel (Bloomberg via National Real Estate Investor)
"A Dutch lodging brand backed by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund plans to open tech-forward boutique hotels across the United States."
6. Most expensive stadium ever built debuts in LA without fans (Bisnow)
"The NFL's largest stadium was unveiled this week without much fanfare to match its scale and sky-high price tag. Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts, Los Angeles Chargers owner Dean Spanos and Los Angeles Rams owner and billionaire developer Stan Kroenke held a virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday celebrating the opening of SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, a 298-acre sports and entertainment development in Los Angeles County privately funded by Rams ownership. The project is estimated to have a $5B price tag and is believed to be the most expensive such venture in history."
Related Stories
Market Data | Apr 6, 2023
JLL’s 2023 Construction Outlook foresees growth tempered by cost increases
The easing of supply chain snags for some product categories, and the dispensing with global COVID measures, have returned the North American construction sector to a sense of normal. However, that return is proving to be complicated, with the construction industry remaining exceptionally busy at a time when labor and materials cost inflation continues to put pricing pressure on projects, leading to caution in anticipation of a possible downturn. That’s the prognosis of JLL’s just-released 2023 U.S. and Canada Construction Outlook.
Market Data | Apr 4, 2023
Nonresidential construction spending up 0.4% in February 2023
National nonresidential construction spending increased 0.4% in February, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published by the U.S. Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $982.2 billion for the month, up 16.8% from the previous year.
Multifamily Housing | Mar 24, 2023
Average size of new apartments dropped sharply in 2022
The average size of new apartments in 2022 dropped sharply in 2022, as tracked by RentCafe. Across the U.S., the average new apartment size was 887 sf, down 30 sf from 2021, which was the largest year-over-year decrease.
Multifamily Housing | Mar 14, 2023
Multifamily housing rent rates remain flat in February 2023
Multifamily housing asking rents remained the same for a second straight month in February 2023, at a national average rate of $1,702, according to the new National Multifamily Report from Yardi Matrix. As the economy continues to adjust in the post-pandemic period, year-over-year growth continued its ongoing decline.
Contractors | Mar 14, 2023
The average U.S. contractor has 9.2 months worth of construction work in the pipeline, as of February 2023
Associated Builders and Contractors reported today that its Construction Backlog Indicator increased to 9.2 months in February, according to an ABC member survey conducted Feb. 20 to March 6. The reading is 1.2 months higher than in February 2022.
Industry Research | Mar 9, 2023
Construction labor gap worsens amid more funding for new infrastructure, commercial projects
The U.S. construction industry needs to attract an estimated 546,000 additional workers on top of the normal pace of hiring in 2023 to meet demand for labor, according to a model developed by Associated Builders and Contractors. The construction industry averaged more than 390,000 job openings per month in 2022.
Market Data | Mar 7, 2023
AEC employees are staying with firms that invest in their brand
Hinge Marketing’s latest survey explores workers’ reasons for leaving, and offers strategies to keep them in the fold.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 21, 2023
Multifamily housing investors favoring properties in the Sun Belt
Multifamily housing investors are gravitating toward Sun Belt markets with strong job and population growth, according to new research from Yardi Matrix. Despite a sharp second-half slowdown, last year’s nationwide $187 billion transaction volume was the second-highest annual total ever.
Contractors | Feb 14, 2023
The average U.S. contractor has nine months worth of construction work in the pipeline
Associated Builders and Contractors reports today that its Construction Backlog Indicator declined 0.2 months to 9.0 in January, according to an ABC member survey conducted Jan. 20 to Feb. 3. The reading is 1.0 month higher than in January 2022.
Office Buildings | Feb 9, 2023
Post-Covid Manhattan office market rebound gaining momentum
Office workers in Manhattan continue to return to their workplaces in sufficient numbers for many of their employers to maintain or expand their footprint in the city, according to a survey of more than 140 major Manhattan office employers conducted in January by The Partnership for New York City.