Apr 22 2010

Hunt Wishes Everyone a Happy Earth Day!

On this day, Hunt would like to share a few facts of Hunt’s approach to protecting our planet.

Doing our part to protect the environment is both our duty and privilege. That’s why we have adopted our own Green Initiatives in an effort to live, work and deliver projects more sustainably.  Our expectation is that these initiatives will continue to evolve and change with new ideas, technology, Hunt team input and collaboration with our trade contracting partners and vendors.

The accompanying graphic is a collection of highlights of Hunt’s sustainability program. Also, please check out the video below to hear about all of the efforts Hunt made to ensure the Phoenix Convention Center received a LEED® Silver status, as well as being the largest building to receive LEED Silver in the State of Arizona.


Apr 20 2010

Conrad Takes TripAdvisor Top 25 Award

TripAdvisor released their 2010 Traveler’s Choice Award list, naming Conrad Indianapolis a Top 25 U.S. Hotel. The company has been putting together the list for eight years now based on traveler experience.

TripAdviCsor Traveler’s Choice winners are based on the millions of real and unbiased reviews and opinions about hotels using feedback from customers using their site to book a stay. Other content from various sites is also incorporated in the rating system.

The luxury hotel also made the 2010 Condé Nast Traveler Gold List for its second year. Readers of Condé Nast Traveler compile the list and only hotels ranking among the top stays in the world to stay are selected.

Completed in 2006 by Hunt Construction Group with Architect Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf Architects, the 23-story hotel features 243 guest rooms, upscale restaurant, wine bar, fitness center, spa, swimming pool, ballroom, meeting rooms and a three level parking garage. There are also five levels of high-end condo residences and a penthouse with an amazing view of downtown Indianapolis.
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Apr 16 2010

UCSF Helen Diller Family Cancer Research Building is Recognized as the Bay Area’s “Deal of the Year”

UCSF Helen Diller Family Cancer Research Building, a five-story, 162,000 SF laboratory research building, located in San Francisco, constructed by Hunt Construction Group, has been honored with a coveted award – “Best Public/Cultural/Health” – by the San Francisco Business Times as part of its 2009 Real Estate Deals of the Year Awards.

The Real Estate Deals of the Year Awards honor the boldest, toughest and most creative real estate deals done in the Bay Area. Every year brokers, developers, architects, contractors and others in the development community submit their biggest, best and most complex projects throughout the Bay Area for consideration in this awards program. The annual awards are selected by the San Francisco Business Times editors and writers in conjunction with a panel of judges, including several of the Bay Area’s top real estate professionals. The San Francisco Business Times highlighted Hunt’s winning project submission in a special publication and Hunt received the award at a gala in March.
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Apr 15 2010

Time Warner Cable Arena to host first playoff game

The Charlotte Bobcats’ first trip to the playoffs is set to make a positive impact on the city. Completed in 2005 by Hunt Construction Group, the 18,500-seat facility will play host to the Orlando Magic on Saturday, April 24. The playoffs should result in a significant economic boost for hotels, restaurants and other local businesses, with tourism officials estimating the impact from the two home games to top $11 million.

Supporters say this is proof that a better basketball team means bigger spending. Indianapolis recently experienced a huge economic boost (approximately $35 million) by playing host to the 2010 NCAA Final Four tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium. It is moments like these when facilities can truly show their worth.

A visitors authority analysis concluded that the impact of the two playoff games will be comparable to an NCAA men’s regional event – the last of which, in 2008, brought in $11 million, according to the Charlotte Observer. It is estimated number could climb to $17 million if the series stretches to seven games.
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Apr 13 2010

Hartsfield-Jackson International Terminal Topping Out

A new global gateway for Atlanta is one step closer today as the final piece of structural steel was placed into the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal.

Mayor Kasim Reed and Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson joined Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Aviation General Manager Ben DeCosta and others for the “topping out” of the 1.2 million-square-foot international terminal. More than 100 guests signed their names on the final structural steel beam before a crane hoisted it into place.

“The Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal represents economic stimulus, sound fiscal management, a focus on efficiency and customer-friendly design,” DeCosta said. “But most importantly, this facility represents a forward-thinking investment in the future of international travel into and out of metro Atlanta.”
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Apr 9 2010

CityScape Phase I Completes Construction

Hunt recently completed construction on the first phase of CityScape in downtown Phoenix. The 28-story, 618,000 square-foot class “A” office tower space is complete with panoramic views and an abundance of natural light with an adjoining 44,000-square-foot steel retail structure.  Beneath all of this sits a 5–level, 1,200 car underground parking garage that covers the entire city block as well as extending under one of the major arteries of Phoenix’s public transit system, Central Ave. between Washington and Jefferson Streets. Ground was broken in late October 2007 for Phase 1 and completed construction in February 2010.

The first phase of the CityScape project is the centerpiece of the three block downtown development which is being considered the largest private development in downtown Phoenix in over 20 years.  The block to the east will redevelop the former 2.2 acre Patriots Square public park into a mix of low-rise retail developments including the introduction of the first grocery store in downtown Phoenix in many years.  The development to the west of the phase 1 work is intended to include two additional mixed use towers consisting mostly of condominiums and additional hotel rooms.
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Apr 6 2010

Lucas Oil Stadium hosts first NCAA Final Four

Think back to your high school gymnasium. Remember how efficiently the school used that space. One Friday you would be at a dance and the next it would be packed with fans rooting for the basketball team. Schools figured out how much space retractable seating could save in a gymnasium setting and the trend has continued ever since. HKS took note of this for Lucas Oil Stadium.

As the design firm, HKS Sports & Entertainment worked closely with the owner during design to ensure the stadium was the best in the Nation for NCAA games. Completed by Hunt Construction Group in August 2008, the stadium was primed for the 2010 Final Four from the day the first fans stepped through the door.

But what exactly sets Lucas Oil Stadium apart from those other facilities you might ask. Anyone who has been to a college game in other venue knows often times the court runs the short way across the football field. That means you are only using about 70 percent of the venue. By contrast, in Lucas Oil Stadium the entire lower level of seating is retractable – much like in a high school gym but on a much larger scale and with more technology involved.
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Mar 25 2010

Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. RE-DOME Art Contest

Applications are in and pieces of the old RCA dome roof material are being distributed to artists around Indiana as part of the Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Inc. (KIBI) RE-DOME project.

In February, KIBI announced its plans to take the dome material from the RCA Dome and encourage artists to create exciting new works rather than let the material end up in a landfill. Completed in May 1984 by Hunt Construction Group, the dome featured over 257-tons of fabric roofing material before it was demolished in December 2008.

While the material has been distributed to various organizations for repurposing, KIBI’s approach is perhaps the most unusual. They are calling on schools, artists, neighborhoods and non-profit organizations to reuse the dome material in an effort to build community and display art around the city.
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Mar 23 2010

New York Magazine Names Best Public Pool in NYC

The March 15 issue of New York Magazine featured their annual Best of New York compendium of where to go for the best of everything in the city. The Bovis/Hunt-built and Handel Architects designed Flushing Meadows Corona Park Natatorium & Ice Rink was named Best Public Pool.

London long ago nabbed the 2012 summer Olympics, but New York didn’t walk away completely empty-handed. At 110,000 square feet, the $66.3 million project is the largest recreation complex ever built in a New York City park. With its ten-lane, 50-meter indoor pool, one can tell the facility was built with Olympic event hosting in mind. To be exact, the facility was to be used for synchronized swimming and water-polo competitions.

Now, for as little as $5 a day or $75 a year, you can dive, swim laps or just splash around under the arched roof and wall of windows. If you’re more of a winter-games enthusiast, there’s a smallish ice rink downstairs. The facility is open year-round so patrons can work on their butterfly in January or their hockey stop in July.
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Mar 22 2010

Idaho State Capitol Restoration Complete

The Idaho State Capitol, originally constructed in 1920 and modeled after our nation’s capitol building in Washington D.C., has stood as a symbol of justice and pride for the lawmakers and residents of Idaho for 80 years. But, by the late 90s, time had taken its toll on the 1920s-era building. In 2006 the Idaho Legislature authorized the Capitol Commission and Department of Administration to enter into agreements with the Idaho State Building Authority (ISBA) to finance the $85 million restoration and the underground wings addition to the Capitol building.

Hunt Construction Group along with our joint venture partner Jacobsen Construction (the joint venture team who recently completed the Utah State Capitol Restoration) began construction on the capitol project in the summer of 2007. The scope of the project included upgrades to the 257,000 -square-foot Idaho State Capitol building, including new MEP systems, as well as tenant improvements to the 50,000 -square-foot Garden Wings that were added to the east and west sides of the building.

Completed ahead of schedule and under budget, the Jacobsen-Hunt team upgraded every major function of the building including its strength, stability, climate-control, and life-safety systems. Some of the most significant upgrades in the building are hidden behind the walls, ceilings, and floors. However, visitors will be most impressed with the stately and grand appearance of the updated public areas.
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