Australian construction activity has declined for the past 21 months, a report shows.

The Australian Industry Group-Housing Industry Association's performance of construction index (PCI) fell 4.2 points to 35.6 in February.

A reading below 50 indicates a contraction in activity.

The index has now shown a contraction for 21 consecutive months.

All four construction industry sub-sectors experienced falls in activity, with commercial and apartment building sectors posting the largest decline.

The new orders sub-index also declined 1.7 points to 34.2.

Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) director of public policy Dr Peter Burn said the February data showed the rate of decline increased after slowing in January.

"The tentative signs of recovery that had emerged in the closing months of 2011 as interest rates were lowered, appear to have dissipated since the start of this year," he said.

"With new orders also weak in February and with market interest rates now somewhat higher, the outlook for the next few months remains flat, particularly for commercial and residential construction."

Housing Industry Association (HIA) senior economist Andrew Harvey said the index showed the Reserve Bank of Australia's decision to cut the official interest rate by 25 basis points in November and again, by the same amount, in December had not been enough to halt the decline in the sector.

See more here:
Construction's 21st month of decline

IQALUIT, Nunavut - Nunavut's former fire marshal says the territorial government should have known an apartment block that was the scene of a fatal blaze didn't meet modern building codes.

Tony Noakes, who lost his job in May 2010 after he voiced related concerns, says similar problems exist throughout the territory.

"I'm concerned government hasn't implemented any recommendations I put forward in my report in 2009," Noakes, who now lives in Lyndhurst, Ont., said Tuesday. "Maybe something could have been done to save these people.

"It's not a far stretch to say there's gross negligence here."

At least two people died when a 22-unit block in the White Row apartments went up in flames on the frigid night of Feb. 27. The building was being used as a residence for Nunavut Arctic College and all the tenants but one were students or their families.

Some 83 people were forced outside in -50 C temperatures and lost everything in the fire.

Reports have said the two who died were adult children of an Arctic College student. Remains of one person were found Friday and police reported Monday that a second set of remains had been found.

An RCMP forensic team was on the site.

White Row was built about 35 years ago well before Nunavut was created and Iqaluit named as its capital. Noakes pointed to a fire inspection dated Jan. 23, 2000, that outlined a series of structural problems with White Row's 200 block.

The biggest problem was that individual units didn't have adequate fire-resistant separation walls between them, said the report. It also noted that existing drainage, waste and ventilation pipes should have been sealed off with fire-resistant drywall.

See original here:
Government knew building in fatal Iqaluit fire a trap: former fire marshal

The Portland Housing Bureau has broken ground on a Northwest Portland housing project that will bring 80 affordable apartments to an area near Union Station.

During a ceremony on Monday, the bureau announced the beginning of the latest phase of The Yards project, a multiphase residential and retail redevelopment project that will transform a seven-acre brownfield behind Union Station.

The first three phases are complete and have brought 535 new, mixed-income housing units to Portland. The first phase began about 15 years ago. The latest phase will add 80 residential units to the project, and its construction is expected to cost $15 million.

The Housing Bureau invested more than $4 million in River District Tax Increment Funds for the latest phase, and also offered a 10-year tax exemption. The project is also expected to create more than 200 construction jobs, and will result in a LEED silver-certified building.

Specifically, the new building will create six studios, 48 one-bedroom apartments and 26 two-bedroom units with 48 parking spaces. A community room, lounge area and fitness center will be built on the ground floor, and free bicycle and other storage spaces will be available.

Read the original:
Ground broken for 80-unit affordable apartment building in Northwest Portland

A city planning commission stalled in making a decision on a proposed apartment complex on North Brooks Street Monday because of conflict between city and university building guidelines.

Property owner Joseph McCormick presented a proposed plan to tear down two existing apartment buildings at 202-206 N. Brooks St. and replace them with one five-story apartment complex.

The apartment complex is designed for students with two-, three- and four-bedroom units, bicycle and moped parking and a modern design.

Its going to serve the students at UW and is very attractive and will serve the market for years to come, project architect Joe Lee said.

The Plan Commission referred the proposal to the Urban Design Commission, which will review the proposed apartment plans for a third time. The Plan Commissions concern included the proposed buildings height and how far it would be set back from the street.

McCormicks proposal also conflicts with guidelines for future construction projects set in the Campus Master Plan, Regent Street South Campus Neighborhood Plan and the citys Comprehensive Plan.

UW Facilities Planning and Management Director Gary Brown said the campus master plan calls for academic and research facilities, including an addition to the Educational Sciences Building to be built the on the corner of Brooks and Dayton streets.

Although the city and universitys plans direct the type of construction in the southeast campus area, Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, said they are recommendations and more of a should-do this than a must-do this.

Resnick said although he understands the conflict, the new apartment complex would be replacing the current dilapidated structures, which were built in 1905 and have no other historical relevance to the neighborhood.

In situations similar to this, developers have compromised and built less-concrete structures with a shorter life span, according to Resnick. However, no agreement has been reached.

Continue reading here:
City stalls on proposed apartment complex on North Brooks Street

Select a Publication: N E W S P A P E R S ---------------------------------------------- ---Alberta--- Airdrie - Airdrie Echo Banff - Banff Crag and Canyon Beaumont - Beaumont News Calgary - The Calgary Sun Camrose - Camrose Canadian Canmore - Canmore Leader Central Alberta - County Market Cochrane - Cochrane Times Cold Lake - Cold Lake Sun Crowsnest Pass - Crowsnest Pass Promoter Devon - Dispatch News Drayton - Drayton Valley Western Review Edmonton - Edmonton Examiner Edmonton - The Edmonton Sun Edson - Edson Leader Fairview - Fairview Post Fort McMurray - Fort McMurray Today Fort Saskatchewan - Fort Saskatchewan Record Grande Prairie - Daily Herald Tribune Hanna - Hanna Herald High River - High River Times Hinton - Hinton Parklander Lacombe - Lacombe Globe Leduc - Leduc Representative Lloydminster - Meridian Booster Mayerthorpe - Mayerthorpe Freelancer Nanton - Nanton News Peace Country - Peace Country Sun Peace River - Peace River Record Gazette Pincher Creek - Pincher Creek Echo Sherwood Park - Sherwood Park News Spruce Grove - Spruce Grove Examiner Stony Plain - Stony Plain Reporter Strathmore - Strathmore Standard Vermilion - Vermilion Standard Vulcan - Vulcan Advocate Wetaskiwin - Wetaskiwin Times Whitecourt - Whitecourt Star ---Manitoba--- Altona - Alton Red River Valley Echo Beausejour - Beausejour Review Carman - Carman Valley Leader Gimli - Interlake Spectator Lac Du Bonnet - Lac Du Bonnet Leader Morden - Morden Times Portage la Prairie - Portage Daily Graphic Selkirk - Selkirk Journal Stonewall - Stonewall Argus and Teulon Times Winkler - Winkler Times Winnipeg - The Winnipeg Sun ---Ontario--- Amherstburg - Amherstburg Echo Bancroft - Bancroft this Week Barrie - Barrie Examiner Barry's Bay - Barry's Bay this Week Belleville - Intelligencer Bradford - Bradford Times Brantford - Expositor Brockville - The Recorder & Times Chatham - Chatham Daily News Chatham - Chatham This Week Chatham - Today's Farmer Clinton - Clinton News-Record Cobourg - Northumberland Today Cochrane - Cochrane Times Post Collingwood - Enterprise Bulletin Cornwall - Standard Freeholder Delhi - Delhi News-Record Dresden - Leader Spirit Dunnville - Dunnville Chronicle Elliot Lake - Standard Espanola - Mid-North Monitor Fort Erie - Times Gananoque - Gananoque Reporter Goderich - Goderich Signal-Star Grand Bend - Lakeshore Advance Haliburton - Haliburton Echo Hanover - The Post Ingersoll - Ingersoll Times Innisfil - Innisfil Examiner Kapuskasing - Kapuskasing Northern Times Kenora - Kenora Daily Miner and News Kenora - Lake of the Woods Enterprise Kincardine - Kincardine News Kingston - Frontenac This Week Kingston - Kingston This Week Kingston - Kingston Whig Standard Kirkland Lake - Northern News Leamington - Leamington Post Lindsay - The Lindsay Post London - The London Free Press London - The Londoner Lucknow - Lucknow Sentinel Midland - Free Press Minden - Minden Times Mitchell - Mitchell Advocate Napanee - Napanee Guide Niagara-on-the-Lake - Niagara Advance Niagara Falls - Review Niagara Falls - Niagara Shopping News Niagara Falls - W. Niagara Community Newspapers North Bay - North Bay Nugget Northumberland - Northumberland Today Norwich - Norwich Gazette Orillia - Packet and Times Ottawa - The Ottawa Sun Owen Sound - Sun Times Oxford - Oxford Review Paris - Paris Star Online Pelham - Pelham News Pembroke - Daily Observer Peterborough - Peterborough Examiner Petrolia - Petrolia Topic Picton - County Weekly News Port Colborne - Inport News Port Hope - Northumberland Today Port Elgin - Shoreline Beacon Sarnia - Observer Sarnia - Sarnia This Week Sault Ste Marie - Sault Star Sault Ste Marie - Sault This Week Seaforth - Seaforth Huron Expositor Simcoe - Simcoe Reformer St. Catharines - St. Catharines Shopping News St. Catharines - Standard St. Thomas - St. Thomas Times-Journal Stirling - Community Press Stratford - The Beacon Herald Strathroy - Strathroy Age Dispatch Sudbury - Sudbury Star Thorold - Thorold News Tillsonburg - Tillsonburg News Timmins - Daily Press Timmins - Timmins Times Toronto - The Toronto Sun Trenton - Trentonian Wallaceburg - Wallaceburg Courier Press Welland - Tribune Welland - Welland News West Lorne - The Chronicle Wiarton - Wiarton Echo Woodstock - Sentinel Review ---Saskatchewan--- Meadow Lake - Meadow Lake Progress Melfort - Melfort Journal Nipawin - Nipawin Journal MAGAZINES & SPECIALTY PUBLICATIONS --------- Biz Magazine Business London Cottage Home and Property Showcase Food and Wine Show Hamilton Halton Weddings Hamilton Magazine InterVin International Wine Awards Kingston Life London Citylife Muskoka Magazine Muskoka Trails Niagara Food and Wine Expo Niagara Magazine Ontario Farmer Ontario Golf Sault Good Life Simcoe Life Sudbury Bride Guide The Home Show Vines Magazine What's Up Muskoka

The rest is here:
Building opponents lose appeal

By JOY BROWN

STAFF WRITER

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency on Monday ordered extensive asbestos removal at the burned Argyle apartment building, where demolition is expected to start this week, Service-Safety Director Paul Schmelzer said.

"The news is the worst case scenario from the owners' perspective," Schmelzer said. Specialists in hazardous materials removal must undertake "full-site remediation," which is costly, he said.

The 122-year-old building, damaged by fire and the millions of gallons of water poured on it Feb. 23, has been destined for razing since last week, when structural engineers decided it was in danger of collapsing. Wall bracing was done to temporarily keep it upright.

City officials had hoped to get the site declared an emergency by the state, so the razing process could be hurried. But the EPA's asbestos concerns have slowed demolition.

Since the fire, South Main Street from Sandusky to Lincoln streets has been closed to traffic, which has affected commerce, too. Some of those barricades will come down today.

"We hope to have the building in a pile, sidewalks cleaned up and Main Street reopened on March 12, a week from now," Schmelzer said Monday.

Asbestos removal could begin as early as today, but Schmelzer said hazardous materials crews will have to get equipment there and become familiar with the site.

Asbestos cleanup and demolition can be done at the same time, he said, and demolition may begin Thursday.

Read the original post:
EPA orders removal of asbestos at fire-damaged Argyle building

Select a Publication: N E W S P A P E R S ---------------------------------------------- ---Alberta--- Airdrie - Airdrie Echo Banff - Banff Crag and Canyon Beaumont - Beaumont News Calgary - The Calgary Sun Camrose - Camrose Canadian Canmore - Canmore Leader Central Alberta - County Market Cochrane - Cochrane Times Cold Lake - Cold Lake Sun Crowsnest Pass - Crowsnest Pass Promoter Devon - Dispatch News Drayton - Drayton Valley Western Review Edmonton - Edmonton Examiner Edmonton - The Edmonton Sun Edson - Edson Leader Fairview - Fairview Post Fort McMurray - Fort McMurray Today Fort Saskatchewan - Fort Saskatchewan Record Grande Prairie - Daily Herald Tribune Hanna - Hanna Herald High River - High River Times Hinton - Hinton Parklander Lacombe - Lacombe Globe Leduc - Leduc Representative Lloydminster - Meridian Booster Mayerthorpe - Mayerthorpe Freelancer Nanton - Nanton News Peace Country - Peace Country Sun Peace River - Peace River Record Gazette Pincher Creek - Pincher Creek Echo Sherwood Park - Sherwood Park News Spruce Grove - Spruce Grove Examiner Stony Plain - Stony Plain Reporter Strathmore - Strathmore Standard Vermilion - Vermilion Standard Vulcan - Vulcan Advocate Wetaskiwin - Wetaskiwin Times Whitecourt - Whitecourt Star ---Manitoba--- Altona - Alton Red River Valley Echo Beausejour - Beausejour Review Carman - Carman Valley Leader Gimli - Interlake Spectator Lac Du Bonnet - Lac Du Bonnet Leader Morden - Morden Times Portage la Prairie - Portage Daily Graphic Selkirk - Selkirk Journal Stonewall - Stonewall Argus and Teulon Times Winkler - Winkler Times Winnipeg - The Winnipeg Sun ---Ontario--- Amherstburg - Amherstburg Echo Bancroft - Bancroft this Week Barrie - Barrie Examiner Barry's Bay - Barry's Bay this Week Belleville - Intelligencer Bradford - Bradford Times Brantford - Expositor Brockville - The Recorder & Times Chatham - Chatham Daily News Chatham - Chatham This Week Chatham - Today's Farmer Clinton - Clinton News-Record Cobourg - Northumberland Today Cochrane - Cochrane Times Post Collingwood - Enterprise Bulletin Cornwall - Standard Freeholder Delhi - Delhi News-Record Dresden - Leader Spirit Dunnville - Dunnville Chronicle Elliot Lake - Standard Espanola - Mid-North Monitor Fort Erie - Times Gananoque - Gananoque Reporter Goderich - Goderich Signal-Star Grand Bend - Lakeshore Advance Haliburton - Haliburton Echo Hanover - The Post Ingersoll - Ingersoll Times Innisfil - Innisfil Examiner Kapuskasing - Kapuskasing Northern Times Kenora - Kenora Daily Miner and News Kenora - Lake of the Woods Enterprise Kincardine - Kincardine News Kingston - Frontenac This Week Kingston - Kingston This Week Kingston - Kingston Whig Standard Kirkland Lake - Northern News Leamington - Leamington Post Lindsay - The Lindsay Post London - The London Free Press London - The Londoner Lucknow - Lucknow Sentinel Midland - Free Press Minden - Minden Times Mitchell - Mitchell Advocate Napanee - Napanee Guide Niagara-on-the-Lake - Niagara Advance Niagara Falls - Review Niagara Falls - Niagara Shopping News Niagara Falls - W. Niagara Community Newspapers North Bay - North Bay Nugget Northumberland - Northumberland Today Norwich - Norwich Gazette Orillia - Packet and Times Ottawa - The Ottawa Sun Owen Sound - Sun Times Oxford - Oxford Review Paris - Paris Star Online Pelham - Pelham News Pembroke - Daily Observer Peterborough - Peterborough Examiner Petrolia - Petrolia Topic Picton - County Weekly News Port Colborne - Inport News Port Hope - Northumberland Today Port Elgin - Shoreline Beacon Sarnia - Observer Sarnia - Sarnia This Week Sault Ste Marie - Sault Star Sault Ste Marie - Sault This Week Seaforth - Seaforth Huron Expositor Simcoe - Simcoe Reformer St. Catharines - St. Catharines Shopping News St. Catharines - Standard St. Thomas - St. Thomas Times-Journal Stirling - Community Press Stratford - The Beacon Herald Strathroy - Strathroy Age Dispatch Sudbury - Sudbury Star Thorold - Thorold News Tillsonburg - Tillsonburg News Timmins - Daily Press Timmins - Timmins Times Toronto - The Toronto Sun Trenton - Trentonian Wallaceburg - Wallaceburg Courier Press Welland - Tribune Welland - Welland News West Lorne - The Chronicle Wiarton - Wiarton Echo Woodstock - Sentinel Review ---Saskatchewan--- Meadow Lake - Meadow Lake Progress Melfort - Melfort Journal Nipawin - Nipawin Journal MAGAZINES & SPECIALTY PUBLICATIONS --------- Biz Magazine Business London Cottage Home and Property Showcase Food and Wine Show Hamilton Halton Weddings Hamilton Magazine InterVin International Wine Awards Kingston Life London Citylife Muskoka Magazine Muskoka Trails Niagara Food and Wine Expo Niagara Magazine Ontario Farmer Ontario Golf Sault Good Life Simcoe Life Sudbury Bride Guide The Home Show Vines Magazine What's Up Muskoka

See the original post:
Opponents of Minnow Lake apartment building lose appeal

The developer rehabilitating two once-prominent Hornell apartment buildings is hoping work will start this month.

Hewan Fraser, co-founder and general manager of the Bronx-based IronShore Property Management, said he hasnt picked an exact date for foundation work on the apartment at 1 Prindle Ave. to start, but believes it will be this month.

For me, Ive got the guys on call waiting to go to work, he said. The swing in temperature is too much right now. It could be the high 40s, then it could be the low 30s.

Fraser was initially hoping the first apartment building would be finished by Christmas of 2011. Surveys and environmental reviews caused delays, though, and Fraser is still waiting to receive the official permit from the city.

He doesnt expect any hold-ups with the permit, meaning all he has to wait for is a stretch of consistently warm weather.

Hopefully well get going as soon as possible, he said. Im anticipating getting the buildings done this year.

Construction will start with the building at 1 Prindle Ave., which will hold six three-bedroom apartments.

Fraser said once the occupancy of the first building is 75 to 90 percent filled, Maple City Savings, which loaned the majority of the funds for the project, will allow work on the second building to start.

The second apartment building is expected to house six two-bedroom apartments.

In addition to foundation repairs, new electric and plumbing systems and flooring will be installed.

Go here to see the original:
Bronx-based developer hoping Hornell project will start in March

When it comes to green building, the design firm Perkins+Will is doing pretty well. They have more LEED-accredited employees than any other design firm in the country. Theyve created a gutsy list of ethical, healthy building materials to guide design and construction decisions. And they've made their mark with inventive reuse and innovative projects.

These sustainability successes mean that when Perkins+Will designs its own offices, theres a lot of pressure to get it right. In its new Atlanta office, the firm more than managed to live up to its values: Company leaders will announce today that the office is the highest-rated LEED building ever constructed. Paula Vaughan, who co-directs Perkins+Will's sustainable design initiative, talked to GOOD about the process of designing the building. Here are four lessons we took away.

Dont count chits. While the team designing the building looked at LEED requirements, Vaughan says they werent aiming to top the LEED charts. Instead, they focused on created a space that reflected the firms values and improved the experience of people working there. We really have to do what we say we do, Vaughan says.

Stick to your principles. It wasnt always simple. The original building on the site had a parking lot on the ground floor, and while the team knew a strong urban design would feature ground-level retail or another public space there, parking is a valuable commodity in car-centric Atlanta. The designers had to ask themselves: Do we really want to lose that parking? We snapped out of it a minute later, though," says Vaughan. Of course we wanted to lose the parking. The buildings first floor now houses the Museum of Design Atlanta.

Sometimes you have to pave your own way. The firm also wanted to meet the Architecture 2030 challenge for new construction or major renovations, which requires using 60 percent less energy than the regional average for a particular type of building. But the Perkins+Will team struggled to find those sharp reductions, even after designing energy efficiency measures. Atlantas electricity grid depends heavily on coal-fired power plants, and that dirty electricity was driving the buildings consumption up, Vaughan says. The designers ended up installing a co-generation system: two small, gas-fired turbines on the building provide electricity, with the excess energy driving an absorption chiller that heats and chills water.

Consult everyone. The new building has employees working in shared spaceslong benches with work stations instead of cubicles, for instance. The design team came up with idea after interviewing their colleagues about how they worked. But changing the nature of their workspace spooked some employees. When they started looking at the layout, they were worried about it, Vaughan says. Because the designers showed colleagues the plans, they were able to win them over to the idea before they were shocked by the completed project. Ultimately, Vaughan said, changing the way people work and making them more productive and happier was one of the most valuable parts of the project.

Photo courtesy of Eduard Hueber/archphoto

The rest is here:
4 Lessons Learned From Designing the World's Greenest Building

CARBONDALE The Carbondale City Council is expected to vote Tuesday on a resolution approving the final unit development plan for the fourth phase of construction at Park View Apartments at 905 E. Park St.

The fourth phase of construction will add nine buildings to the apartment complex. Each new building will house four one-bedroom apartments. Phase-four plans are available on the city of Carbondale website.

The resolution is the only item listed on the action item agenda for Tuesdays meeting.

The council will also vote on the following consent agenda items:

Acceptance of motor Illinois Department of Transportation motor fuel tax audits for fiscal years 2010 and 2011.

An ordinance adopting a budget adjustment for the current fiscal year after a portion of real estate taxes was incorrectly levied to the firefighter pension fund instead of being split between police and fire pension funds.

A resolution authorizing City Manager Kevin Baity to execute a new five-year agreement between the city and Southern Illinois Regional Landfill for the disposal of solid waste. The city will pay $29.09 for each ton of compacted waste and $23.13 for each ton of loose waste. Those prices are several dollars less than standard rates of disposal at the landfill.

The council is also expected to enter into a closed session to discuss personnel and review closed meeting minutes.

The Carbondale City Council meeting begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday at council chambers at 200 S. Illinois Ave.

dw.norris@thesouthern.com

Link:
Council to vote on apartment construction plan