commercial real estate

The Money Roof

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Thu, 03/11/2010 - 10:40am

Owners can generate more than just solar power by renting out their roofs Whether you're standing on rooftops, gardening on them or just happy that you have one over your head — roofs are more than just the highest part of a structure, and building owners are figuring out how to turn the forgotten space into a money maker.Commercial real estate building owners are realizing they are excellent candidates for solar roof rentals.

National Real Estate Investor recently published a guest column on the topic, written by Gary Kassem who is the president and CEO of SingleSource in Pittsburgh. The article pointed out a few important things to consider regarding roof-mounted solar power generation and feed-in tariffs (FITs). But before I dive into those points, let's get some background on the subject from Kassem:

One CAN Makes a Difference

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Fri, 02/19/2010 - 9:21am
CANstruction is a design/build competition where teams of architects, engineers and contractors build giant structures made of virtually nothing but canned food to help fight hunger. At the end of the competition, all of the canned food is donated to St. Mary's Food Bank Alliance to help aid people in hunger around the Valley.
The 4th Annual Canstruction competition is being held Feb. 19-20 at Fiesta Mall, located at Alma School Road and U.S. 60 in Mesa, Ariz. Eight teams will showcase their talents by designing and building giant structures (10’ x 10’ x 8’h) made almost entirely out of canned foods. 
Teams, which will include high school and college-aged students working alongside professionals this year, have 12 hours to build their structures. These canned food masterpieces will be on display for the public to see at Fiesta Mall Feb. 20–27. During the exhibition, the public may cast their vote for the AIA Phoenix Metro People’s Choice Award and donate canned food at the simultaneous food drive.
Awards given by the Society of Marketing Professional Services during the Canstruction competition include:
- Best Meal
- Best Use of Labels
- Structural Ingenuity
- Jurors' Favorite
- People's Choice
Event sponsors for this year's event include AIA Phoenix Metro, Fresh & Easy, Thomas Reprographics and Shelley Marie Images.
The Annual Canstruction event is hosted by the SMPS Arizona chapter, under the auspices of the Society for Design Administration. Last year, participants helped donate nearly 50,000 pounds of food, which is equivalent to 50,000 meals. 
www.smpsarizona.org/canstruction

CANstruction is a design/build competition where teams of architects, engineers and contractors build giant structures made of virtually nothing but canned food to help fight hunger. At the end of the competition, all of the canned food is donated to St. Mary's Food Bank Alliance to help aid people in hunger around the Valley.

The 4th Annual Canstruction competition is being held Feb. 19-20 at Fiesta Mall, located at Alma School Road and U.S. 60 in Mesa, Ariz. Eight teams will showcase their talents by designing and building giant structures (10’ x 10’ x 8’h) made almost entirely out of canned foods. 

ULI Housing Update

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Mon, 02/15/2010 - 4:04pm

ULI HousingAs the U.S. economy recovers, emerging trends in demographics and consumer behavior will become major drivers of new housing opportunities, resulting in a residential market vastly different from the one that existed prior to the recession, according to Housing in America: The Next Decade, a new research paper authored by John K. McIlwain, senior resident fellow, Urban Land Institute/J. Ronald Terwilliger Chair for Housing.

“The old ‘normal’ will not return,” McIlwain predicted. “Over time, a new mode of metropolitan development will emerge, presenting opportunities and stiff challenges. Those who fail to understand these new trends will find themselves building what is no longer in demand.”

Two key predictions from Housing in America for the decade ahead: home appreciation will slow considerably, to about 1 percent to 2 percent annually; and the current U.S. homeownership rate, now at 67 percent (a decline from the record high of 69 percent at the height of the housing boom) will fall further, to about 62 percent.

Glimmer of Hope: 2010 Forecast

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Fri, 02/05/2010 - 3:33pm

"The recession is over!" Or at least that's what Dr. Peter Linneman says, who is the chief economist for NAI Global and principal of Linneman Associates.

 

In his Linneman Letter, Dr. Linneman says, "we hit bottom around April 2009. However, let's be clear: government panic and subsequent market incursions both lengthened and deepened the cyclical recession that was underway in mid-2008, creating our third post-WWII 'super recession.'"

 

But it's not all bad news out there, Dr. Linneman continues later on in his letter to say, "The good news is that real GDP bottomed in May, while monthly job losses have slowed to near zero. Once job declines end, there will have been a net loss of about 7.24 million jobs over the duration of the current recession. This is equivalent to about 4 years of normal job growth, which is about 1.8 million jobs per year."

Stimulated Construction

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Fri, 01/22/2010 - 9:17pm

Anyone who says things don't look bleak out there hasn't looked outside their window in the past few days. But as they say — "when it rains it pours" — and Arizona has not been the exception, it's been the definition.

The Associated General Contractors of America recently put out a 2010 construction outlook forecast that stated nearly 9 in 10 contractors say there will be no recovery in 2010. Further outlook doom and gloom within the forecast included:

Walking a Fine Line

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Fri, 01/15/2010 - 3:18pm
Sustainable New Code

I come across a lot of different viewpoints on where the commercial real estate industry stands daily. Each viewpoint ranges from overly optimistic to drumming up the depths of doom and gloom, but all of them convey the same message — one of fear and hope. Sometimes the two are so close together, some would not be able to tell the difference.

In one recent CoStar article, a local capital services company was quoted as saying, "The commercial real estate industry is a disaster waiting to happen." In that same article just a few paragraphs later, an East Coast firm states that there are still "signs of life in each sector." So which is it? CoStar tried to draw a fine line between the two, only to confirm that 2010 will meld both hope and fear into one sphere.

Sustainable New Code

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Fri, 01/08/2010 - 3:16pm

Sustainable CodeWhen I was younger I used to think of codes as having to do with the CIA, or being a super spy. It was fun to try to work on the various combinations of letters and symbols to see if I could create and or "crack" a friend's code. Then I grew up... Now, I'm not saying that codes are a bad thing, they are just not as much fun as I remember them being. There is a lot more paperwork involved, but at least the ending is aimed at the same goal of making things "better" in one sense or another.

While going through various construction industry news, I came across an article on Reed Construction Data's Web site by Wayne Engebretson. The article talks about the International Green Construction Code (IGCC)'s draft to be the first International Code (I-code) to address sustainable design and green construction practices for all commercial building types. The code is scheduled for release in March 2010.

New to Market Jan/Feb 2010

Each issue of AZRE: Arizona Commercial Real Estate highlights a variety of commercial projects under construction or recently announced. To submit your company’s information, please e-mail a Project Information Form and rendering to: allie.bell@azbigmedia.com.

Construction Material Prices Bottom Out 4Q09

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Wed, 12/23/2009 - 4:40pm

Construction Prices 4Q09National average construction costs experienced a decline for the fourth consecutive quarter, according to Rider Levett Bucknall's cost data for 4Q09. 

 

Compared to the considerable drop that occurred over 1Q09, the diminished rate of decline experienced over the most recent two quarters suggests that builders are unlikely to make additional deep cuts to their already tightened margins — even as workload projections remain pessimistic.

 

According to RBL's quarterly report forecast for 2010, they expect construction inflation to be essentially flat for as long as perceptions about the amount of construction work available remain bleak and inflation in the broader economy remains subdued. 

"Constructors will be eagerly monitoring for a sustained uptick in design firms' billings as a potential herald of recovery in construction volumes," RBL states.

Virtual Protection along Arizona's Border

Submitted by Allie_Bell on Thu, 12/17/2009 - 1:46pm

Virtual border

Speaking of feeling vulnerable — add a virtual border fence to the latest list of protection measures that technology has been applied to. According to the Associated Press, government officials overseeing the construction of a virtual fence along the 2,000 mile U.S.-Mexico border hope to turn over the first segment to the Border Patrol in January. Construction will begin on the second stretch in a few weeks.
Although the government has plans to extend the network of cameras, ground sensors and radars along most of the border, officials said they'll draw on lessons from the first two segments in southern Arizona as they contemplate if and where to build more sections and how fast to complete them.
The government estimated it would cost $6.7 billion to cover most of the Mexican border by 2014, according to Mark Borkowski, the government's director of the virtual fence project.
Once both Southern Arizona sections are in operation along 53 miles of the border, the next step would be to authorize construction through the majority of the 375-mile border in Arizona, the nation's busiest gateway for immigrant smuggling and a major thoroughfare for marijuana smuggling.
By using cameras, ground sensors and radars mounted on a series of towers, the system allows a small number of dispatchers to track illegal border-crossers on a computer monitor. They'll be able to zoom in with cameras to see whether it's a person or animal moving, and decide whether the movement requires sending Border Patrol agents to the scene.
The virtual fence is designed to add another layer of protection at the border, along with thousands of Border Patrol agents and 650 miles of real fences. The government and the contractor building the virtual fence, Boeing Co., have had a series of setbacks earlier in the project.
While a prototype virtual fence in southern Arizona has been in use for nearly two years, the first permanent 23-mile stretch along the Mexican border near Sasabe, Ariz., would be handed over to the Border Patrol in January for testing, if everything goes as planned. The government hopes to begin construction on a second 30-mile section south of Ajo, Ariz., once environmental clearances are finalized.
Boeing Co.: http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/sbinet/index.html

Everything nowadays is tied to technology in some way. I can't even leave the house without checking to make sure I armed the system, double checked that I have my cell phone in hand, and then automatically hook up my GPS before starting the car. Granted, locks would protect the home, old fashioned maps work just as well, and there was a time of survival before the cell phone was invented — right?! ... I still feel vulnerable in some way without technology though, despite knowing my grandparents survived just fine without today's latest gadgets.

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