Parsons Selected for San Diego's Mid-Coast Trolley Extension

Pasadena-based Parsons has received a contract from the San Diego Association of Governments to provide environmental documents, transit planning, and preliminary engineering on the $939 million, 11-mi. extension of San Diego's trolley to the University City community.

Parsons' scope of work includes transit planning and preparation of the environmental documents and preliminary engineering plans. To allow revenue service as soon as possible, the project will be fast-tracked by working on its numerous components in tandem instead of sequentially. Parsons also will work with SANDAG to consider alternative construction methods to expedite project completion.

The project will involve coordination with Caltrans, UC San Diego, City of San Diego, Metropolitan Transit System and other federal, state, and local agencies.

Planned to have eight new stations, the extension will provide service from the Old Town Transit Center (designed by Parsons) to UCSD and University City, San Diego's most densely populated community outside of downtown San Diego. The new trolley extension will offer an alternate route for commuters along the Interstate 5 corridor between interstates 8 and 805.

The Mid-Coast Trolley will share a joint right-of-way with the existing freight/passenger rail service in the southerly portion of the project and potentially the I-5 right-of-way in the north. The project area is constrained by existing rail and highway infrastructure, substantial numbers of existing utilities, and the environmentally sensitive Rose Canyon and Rose Creek.

Clark & Sullivan Completes Gym

Clark & Sullivan has completed construction on a new gymnasium for the Gold Trail Union School District in Placerville.

Designed by Aspen Street Architects of Angels Camp, the multi-level, 9,100-sq.-ft. structure is on the campus of Gold Trail Elementary School. The $2.6-million project began in August 2004. The new facility includes public rest rooms, locker and changing rooms, and a fully functional gymnasium with stackable bleachers. The developer of the project was Regent Development of Sacramento.

Earth Tech Chosen by Corps of Engineers

Long Beach-based Earth Tech Inc., a provider of consulting, engineering and construction services, has been selected by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District to provide environmental restoration services at MacDill Air Force Base near Tampa, Fla. The performance-based task order contract was awarded for one year with two optional years, for a total value of as much as $9.8 million.

Earth Tech will provide environmental restoration and closure services at 22 sites at MacDill AFB, part of the Air Force Air Mobility Command. The work will include in-situ groundwater treatment; the demolition and removal of a small arms firing range; site monitoring and surveillance; soil and sediment removal; regulatory agency coordination; and community relations support. Earth Tech will serve as the prime contractor on the project, working with subcontractors Bhate Environmental Associates and Black & Veatch.

Ground Broken on First of Two Condo Towers on Rincon Hill

General contractor Bovis Lend Lease broke ground last week on the first of two condominium towers at First and Harrison streets in the Rincon Hill area of San Francisco. Completion is set for December 2007.

Developer Michael Kriozere of Urban West Associates of La Jolla said the two towers, at 55 and 45 stories, will feature 709 luxury condo units. The first phase of the fast-tracked One Rincon Hill project--a 55-story tower and a parking podium for both towers-has a construction cost of $270 million.

The architect is Solomon Cordwell Buenz & Associates of Chicago. The project was approved by the city's planning commission in August.

The towers will be spaced 115 ft. apart and occupy a footprint of 9,800 sq. ft. There will be about eight condos per floor; the units will range in size from 600 sq. ft. to 1,800 sq. ft. Views, according to the developer, will be spectacular since units will have floor-to-ceiling windows.

The podium structure will be surrounded by 14 townhouses and will include a pool and health club. A variety of open spaces, ranging from public parks, plazas and courtyards to private roof decks, terraces and porches, will be interspersed throughout the district.

The Rincon Hill area is south of the Financial District and north of the South Beach neighborhood. The area is bounded by Folsom, Steuart, Bryant and Beale streets, the Embarcadero, Bay Bridge approach and Transbay Terminal ramps. The area contains approximately 55 acres of land and includes more than 70 parcels.

According to the city's planning department, the Rincon Hill redevelopment project is envisioned as a real urban neighborhood, with sidewalks up to 32 ft. wide and landscaped medians.

Another Rincon Hill condo tower broke ground in August across the street from the Transbay Terminal, which is also due for redevelopment, and will be three stories taller than One Rincon Hill's tallest. Webcor Builders is still doing site work on the 58-story condominium tower at 301 Mission Street. The project will include a nine-story podium with residential apartments and amenities, and a public, two-story glass atrium. At 645 ft., the tower will be the fourth-tallest structure on the city's skyline. The project includes 420 one- to three-bedroom and penthouse condominium units and a five-level underground parking garage for 350 cars. The project is scheduled for completion in 2008.

The design by New York-based Handel Architects creates a significant architectural landmark for the upcoming redevelopment of the Transbay Terminal district. The tower's exterior design creates the impression of a translucent crystal, according to Handel. Exterior materials will incorporate a variety of glass and metal fins to craft a sense of lightness and transparency.

Johnson & Jennings Completes Construction for Law Firm

San Diego-based Johnson & Jennings General Contracting completed tenant improvement construction for the 13,000-sq.-ft. law offices of Littler Mendelson in downtown San Diego.

Project work included the build-out of space to include high-end offices, new conference rooms and reception area.

McCarthy Starts on Keck Center Project in Santa Monica

McCarthy Building Cos. has construction underway on a health care facility for Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica.

Designed by Saint John's Associated Architects, a joint venture of HOK and the SmithGroup, the Howard Keck Diagnostic and Treatment Center is part of the first phase of a major development and construction process currently underway at the health center, which was severely damaged during the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The four-story, 275,000-sq.-ft.facility will include a base isolation system.

Excavation and shoring of the building site for the new facility will be finished in October, with completion of the diagnostic and treatment building scheduled for late-spring 2008. The demolition and excavation of the south, east and west buildings will be completed in January 2009 for future site work.

Construction Begins on Murrieta Business Park

KDG Investments Inc. has begun construction on Jefferson Business Center, a 225,000-sq.-ft., 19-building project in Murrieta. The owner/developer is Jefferson Business Center, LLC, and Irvine-based Ware Malcomb is the architect.

The project includes three retail showroom buildings and 16 light industrial buildings. The interiors include speculative office suites averaging 750 sq. ft. The buildings range in size from 7,400 to 17,650 sq. ft. The project also includes approximately one acre for future construction.

Construction began in September and is estimated to conclude in June.