In today’s construction news, Barack Obama’s presidential center has not been the easiest or fastest development endeavor. On the other hand, New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams expect to build South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT), the largest dedicated offshore wind port in the country. Lastly, on Thursday, June 6, officials from Avondale Estates began construction of the U.S. 278 complete street project. The construction is expected to start on June 20 and last for eighteen months.
Obama Celebrates Presidential Center Construction Milestone
Original Source: Obama Marks Milestone in Construction of Presidential Center
Barack Obama hailed the presidential center’s completion nine years after choosing Chicago.
The development of Barack Obama’s presidential centre has been slow and complicated. Far from it.
On Monday, 3,317 days after Mr. Obama announced plans to build the facility in Chicago, he was in town to commemorate the long-awaited structure’s full height, 225 feet over the South Side. The centre should open in 2026 if all goes well.
“When we started this thing, I wasn’t sure it was ever going to get done,” Mr. Obama joked while signing a beam at the centre, where interior wall-framing and plumbing work has begun.
His announcement in 2015 that the centre would be erected in Chicago, where he worked as a community organiser and was elected to the Illinois General Assembly and U.S. Senate, thrilled many Chicagoans. However, winning the project was simple.
After a year of deliberation, Mr. Obama chose land in Jackson Park near Lake Michigan and the University of Chicago. Residents worried about gentrification, and parks advocates sued the centre in federal court for inappropriate use of public land. President Obama, America’s first Black president, left office more than a full term before the 2021 groundbreaking event.
The South Side has been preparing for the museum’s planned tourist traffic while the facility has been built. The stone facade is being built while the concrete structure rises over Stony Island Avenue.
The Monday ceremony occurred with political uncertainty. President Biden, Mr. Obama’s vice president, trails Trump in swing states in many surveys. Israel’s Gaza war has split Democrats. Pollsters say sections of the coalition that gave Mr. Obama two terms are warming to Republicans.
As he greeted construction workers and praised American labourers, Mr. Obama did not address such issues or take questions from reporters.
Every day, all across this country, here in Chicago, working people are putting on their boots and hard hat and making things happen, and a lot of times we take it for granted,” Mr. Obama told the workers. He added, “hopefully for decades to come, every time people come by, they will be seeing a little bit of your work.”
The contractor directing the building, Brown & Momen president Ernest Brown, said the structure was built to last and “on the inside it’s just a spectacular space.”
Because of Covid, it’s taken a lot of time to secure certain supplies, so we have to do a lot of planning, pre-purchasing, and it’s all coming together, said Mr. Brown, who predicted construction would last another year and a half.
Mr. Obama envisions a replica Oval Office and White House exhibitions on his center’s 19-acre grounds.
The proposals include meeting areas, a vegetable garden, a gym, and a Chicago Public Library branch. Mr. Obama, who still owns a South Side property but spends most of his time in Washington, has described the facility as a museum, neighbourhood meeting place, and leadership training ground.
The Obama Presidential Centre will not be a presidential library or NARA-run. Some historians were disturbed when Mr. Obama chose a privately owned site to accept artefacts from the archives, breaking recent custom. National Archives operates “first fully digital presidential library” about Obama’s presidency.
US’s Largest Offshore Wind Hub Begins Construction at South Brooklyn Marine Terminal
Original Source: Construction begins on largest offshore wind hub in U.S. at South Brooklyn Marine Terminal
The largest specialised offshore wind port in the US, the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT), is being built by Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams.
This project supports New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) target of creating 9,000 MW of offshore wind power by 2035 and is a major step in the clean energy transition. Construction on the terminal will employ roughly 1,000 people.
Governor Hochul stressed that the project promotes economic growth and sustainability. Hochul said South Brooklyn Marine Terminal’s groundbreaking is fueling the redevelopment of the Brooklyn waterfront, bringing important investments to our communities, creating good-paying jobs, and setting the standard for the offshore wind industry.
Mayor Adams reinforced the project’s importance to New York City’s clean energy economy and climate goals. “This offshore wind project will significantly reduce our carbon footprint and ensure our city meets our climate goals of 100-percent clean electricity by 2040 and carbon neutrality by 2050,” added Adams.
New York will get 810 MW of renewable energy from Empire Wind 1, an offshore wind project that will power over 500,000 homes, from the 73-acre SBMT. An onshore substation will connect this energy to the city’s grid at the terminal. End of 2026 is the construction deadline.
According to Equinor Wind US President Molly Morris, “This construction will result in union jobs and local economic benefits while supporting a project that will deliver homegrown power to New Yorkers and position the state as a leader in the advancing offshore wind industry.”
NYSERDA President Doreen M. Harris and Empire State Development President Hope Knight thanked the project for lowering fossil fuel use and strengthening New York’s economy.
The rebuilding of SBMT is part of New York City’s offshore wind leadership strategy. An $191 million investment in a 2021 Offshore Wind Vision Plan intends to make New York a leading destination for this developing sector, creating up to 13,000 employment by 2035.
As New York works towards its climate goals, projects like the SBMT demonstrate the state’s dedication to a sustainable future and a green economy, setting a national example.
Project managers, operators, and maintenance teams may find all they need in the Offshore Wind Ports Information Database.
On the U.S. 278 Complete Roadway Project, Avondale Estates Begins Construction
Original Source: Avondale Estates breaks ground on U.S. 278 complete street project; construction begins June 20
Avondale Estates officials began the U.S. 278 complete roadway project on Thursday, June 6. Construction will start on June 20 and last 18 months.
“Let’s go build something,” Assistant City Manager Shannon Powell said.
Project completion is far overdue. The city commission approved grant, construction administration, and construction contracts in April.
Avondale Estates’ major street, U.S. 278, travels through the city and its historic downtown. Also known as East College Avenue and North Avondale Road. The road diet between Sam’s Crossing and Ashton Place will reduce vehicle lanes from five to three. The project corridor is 1.15 miles.
There will be street parking. A 10-foot path along the whole corridor on the north side of the street, new traffic lights and streetlights, a center median, and a five-foot sidewalk between South Avondale Road and Sam’s Crossing are also part of the project. The city won’t touch the Abelia hedge for the project.
About $8.5 million was spent on construction. The city received $4 million from the federal government, $737,000 from the State Road and Tollway Authority, and $2 million from the Atlanta Regional Commission. City contributions total $1.2 million.
Mayor Jonathan Elmore calls this an important city project. The road was designated as a significant enhancement project in the 2014 downtown master plan and future downtown development in 2004.
Elmore stated, “I think this is the most transformative project in the history of this city since it was founded.” This scope of the project is to remove a five-lane highway that divides our city center and turn it into a primary street that unites our city and promotes cars, pedestrians, and bikes.
More will be added to this story.
Summary of today’s construction news
To sum it up, the National Archives and Records Administration will not run the Obama Presidential Center, nor will it function as an official presidential library. Some historians are concerned about Mr. Obama’s decision to forego recent tradition and instead choose a privately run facility that would be the recipient of some relics on loan from the archives.
On the other hand, projects like the SBMT highlight New York’s dedication to a sustainable future and the growth of a green economy, setting an example for the rest of the country as the state continues to meet its climate targets.
Lastly, according to Mayor Jonathan Elmore, this will be a significant initiative for the community. The road was mentioned in 2004 as a crucial component of the development of downtown and was named as a major project for improvement in the downtown master plan of 2014.
