Category Archives: Construction

The New York State Environmental Facilities Corp. board of directors has approved more than $48 million in grants, interest-free loans, and low-cost loans to support vital drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects across New York state, including two local projects.

The 2022 Enacted Budget adds a $500 million appropriation to support clean water, raising the state’s total investment to $4 billion and continuing to fulfill the state’s $5 billion clean water commitment, officials said.

“Clean water and functioning water infrastructure are essential parts of the standard of living and qualify-of-life for all New Yorkers, and towns and villages across the state have an ongoing need for wastewater treatment plants and water tanks that needs to be filled,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. “The newly enacted budget dedicates $500 million to support clean water initiatives which increases our investment and brings the state closer to fulfilling its commitment to New Yorkers. These projects will underscore our pledge to help protect the environment and the health of New York’s residents and families.”

Environmental Facilities Corporation President and CEO Joseph Rabito said, “By approving these grants and low-cost financing for critical water infrastructure work, the EFC board of directors has ensured that communities statewide can cost-effectively undertake important projects that help protect our precious water resources.”

Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said, “These significant state investments help municipalities prioritize programs to upgrade outdated drinking water infrastructure and implement treatment necessary to improve water quality in communities statewide.”

Construction employment was unchanged from March to April as nonresidential contractors and homebuilders alike struggled to obtain materials and find enough workers, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government data released May 7.

Association officials said the industry’s recovery was being hampered by problems getting stable prices and reliable deliveries of key materials, while the pandemic and federal policies were making it harder for firms to find workers to hire.

“Contractors are experiencing unprecedented intensity and range of cost increases, supply-chain disruptions, and worker shortages that have kept firms from increasing their workforces,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “These challenges will make it difficult for contractors to rebound as the pandemic appears to wane.”

Construction employment in April totaled 7,452,000, matching the March total but amounting to 196,000 employees or 2.6 percent below the most recent peak in February 2020. The number of former construction workers who were unemployed in April, 768,000, dropped by half from a year ago and the sector’s unemployment rate fell from 16.6 percent in April 2020 to 7.7 percent last month.

“The fact that employment has stalled—despite strong demand for new homes, remodeling of all types, and selected categories of nonresidential projects—suggests that contractors can’t get either the materials or the workers they need,” Simonson said.

The economist noted that many firms report key materials are backlogged or rationed, while others report they are having a hard time getting former workers to return to work. He added these factors are contributing to rising costs for many contractors, which are details in the association’s updated Construction Inflation Alert.

By Jill NAgy
Curtis Lumber is building a new store in Schodack and recently purchased two stores formerly operated by Bellevue Builders Supply, one near Binghamton and the other in the Cobleskill area.
The new Schodack store will be close to an existing store, but nearer Columbia Turnpike and more visible from Route 20, according Rich Keating, vice president for sales and marketing.
The existing store was built in 1971. The new one will contain 25,550 square feet of sales space, some 7,500 square feet larger than the present outlet, said Keating. It will include more showroom space for kitchens, lighting equipment, and windows. The former store will be re-purposed for warehouse use.
Munter Enterprises in Middle Grove is the general contractor. Cotler Architects of Latham designed the new building. If all goes well, the new store will be open for business in early 2021.

By Jennifer Farnsworth
A steady need for warehousing has been a green light for JAG Group LLC of Glens Falls to continue with its plan to build four new warehouse buildings on 33 acres of land near Northway Exit 18 in Queensbury.
JAG Group President Tim Barber said he and his business partners are looking to have the warehouses ready for tenants by fall.
They are currently awaiting final approval from the town of Queensbury and expect no issues with the project going forward. Barber and his partners at Native Development Associates are seeking approval from planners to split the former Native Textiles knitting mill site into a total of six lots. Five of them will range from 2.01 acres to 11.32 acres. The sixth lot will be used for road expansion, aiding in site accessibility.

The New York State Builders Association has gone on record to ask the state to allow construction to resume right away—statewide—rather than wait for the proposed phased approach by region that the governor has outlined.

Lewis Dubuque, association executive vice president, said in a May 4 statement that homebuilders “have a limited time-frame based on the weather to undertake construction of residential housing. It is critical for the building industry to get back to work to capture as much of the remaining construction season as possible,” according to the statement.

“Residential construction companies that reside in areas that border other states further risk losing valuable subcontractors who may search for employment in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Jersey and Ohio where construction is currently ramping up,” he said.

In late April, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo outlined a phased plan to re-open New York and re-imagine a new normal for the state starting with construction and manufacturing. He said the plan will be based on regional analysis and determinations. Based on CDC recommendations, once a region experiences a 14-day decline in the hospitalization rate they may begin a phased reopening.