Florida Construction Law

The unique design of the roof of Jim Norick Arena in Oklahoma City could make the building's re-roofing project a challenge. The "catenary roof span" uses steel cables to form a grid pattern to reinforce the concrete roof panels, and the arena is one of the few structures in the country built with this feature. The city plans to remove the old roof covering, and install insulation and a new covering of "elastomeric" material that will move with the building, said Jim Lewellyn, engineer and manager in the city's Department of Public Works. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 407 North Howard Avenue Suite 100 Tampa, FL 33606 www.trentcotney.com

Economists are looking at U.S. data this year and revising down their growth outlook, with a MarketWatch survey outlook falling to 2% from 2.3%. A few months ago, a burst of economic growth was forecast for early 2014. "All it seems I heard about was that momentum was picking up at the end of 2013, but I don't see much evidence," said Stephen Stanley, Pierpont Securities' chief economist. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Atlantic White cedar trees felled by super storm Sandy are being turned into cedar shingles at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. The shingles will be used for an "authentic, 18th-century style roof" on the historic Market House under the efforts of Garland Wood, a master carpenter. The toppled trees come from Double Trouble State Park in N.J. and will provide scarce Atlantic White cedar for the historic site. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a proposed rule to extend the compliance date for the crane operator certification requirement by three years to Nov. 10, 2017. The proposal also would extend to the same date the existing phase-in requirement that employers ensure their operators are qualified to operate the equipment. OSHA decided to extend the enforcement date so the certification requirements do not take effect during potential rulemaking or disrupt the construction industry.  (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Construction materials prices expanded 0.6 percent in January and are up 1.5 percent year over year, according to the Feb. 19 producer price index released by the Department of Labor. More specifically, nonresidential construction materials prices are up 0.5 percent for the month and are 1 percent higher than the same time one year ago.  (From ABC) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

United States Management has submitted a proposal to build a "multi-purpose entertainment and sports arena" that would seat 18,000. If the project is approved by the city council, it "would be one of few in the nation that does not rely on public financing for construction." Chinese investors have put up $200 million for the project. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Designers of the translucent polycarbonate roof topping the Fisht Stadium in Sochi, Russia, are urging Russian President Vladimir Putin not to tear down the structure after this year's Winter Olympic Games. The roof on the $779 million arena protects spectators from ultraviolet light during the day, and permits projections and riggings for nighttime theatrical events. The designers say keeping the roof on the building could keep the stadium profitable year-round. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Confidence among builders in the key U.S. housing market has turned from solidly positive last month to decidedly negative this month, due largely to harsh winter weather. Separately, the general business conditions index in the New York Federal Reserve's Empire State Manufacturing Survey has dropped this month to 4.48 from 12.51 in January, a much larger decline than expected for the closely watched early gauge of manufacturing sentiment. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced the comment period on the proposed rule to improve workplace safety and health through improved tracking of workplace injuries and illnesses will close March 10. The comment period originally was scheduled to close March 8. The proposed rule would amend OSHA's recordkeeping regulations to add requirements for the electronic submission of injury and illness information that employers already are required to keep. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., will debut a discussion draft for tax reform next week. The Congressional Budget Office will give the tax reform plan a secondary score to estimate the economic effect of the proposal.  (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

The pressure caused by ice and snow buildup on the roof of Assembly Hall at Indiana University caused a 50-pound metal plate to fall from the ceiling, according to a structural inspection by engineers. The inspection was done after the metal piece came loose from the ceiling, which postponed the school's basketball game against the University of Iowa. Engineers found "two or three" other plates that were loosened, which will be removed, but they have not seen structural issues with the roof, said IU athletic director Fred Glass. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m   

The Atlanta Braves have picked two finalists, Pope & Land Enterprises and a joint venture that includes AEG, to vie for the $400 million mixed-use project to be developed near where the Braves' new Cobb County baseball stadium will be built in Georgia. The project would include retail space, restaurants and residential units. Populous has already been chosen to design the $672 million stadium, but a contractor still needs to be selected for that project.  (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Despite expectations constrained by record cold weather, construction starts in the key U.S. housing market came in at the low end of expectations in January, down 16% from December. Meanwhile, U.S. producer prices rose 0.2% month-to-month, bringing the gain over the past 12 months to 1.2%. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

The design load of roofs in Aspen, Colo., may provide information about the likelihood of a structure to cave in from snow and alert residents to consult an engineer, according to this article. Roofs installed after March 1965 would be designed with a load of 75 pounds per square foot, as compared to those built before that year, which may be built to carry only 45 to 60 pounds per square foot, said Jim Markalunas, a former city official. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Developer Capstone Partners has unveiled plans to begin construction this summer on a 28-acre mixed-use project dubbed Esterra Park in Redmond, Wash. The $900 million project "will be ready to break ground in June, July," said Capstone's Mike Hubbard, and will consist of three office buildings, a hotel, and up to 1,400 residential units. (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Sales of new homes reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 543,000 units in January, 35% more than in December, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The uptick in sales comes after a sluggish pace in November and December, and it may show a brighter picture than recent data from the National Association of Realtors. However, the report is "consistent with reports of homebuilder sentiment that show strength in the market for new homes," said Mike Fratantoni, chief economist of MBA.   (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Construction industry leaders from more than 100 companies in support of their pledge to employ 100,000 veterans in the next five years — a commitment that was made during the U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment in Construction National Symposium.  (From ABC) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

The Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service Feb. 10 issued a final rule implementing the employer mandate provisions included in the Affordable Care Act. The final rule makes some changes to the proposed rule issued in December 2012, including phasing in provisions for businesses with 50 to 99 full-time employees and those that offer coverage to most but not all their full-time workers. Generally, ACA mandates that employers with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees offer a certain level of health coverage or be subject to new taxes. (From ABC) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

Total construction spending increased to $930.5 billion in December 2013, which was 0.1 percent higher than the revised November 2013 estimate of $929.9 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.     The December 2013 figure is 5.3 percent higher than the December 2012 estimate of $883.6 billion.     In December 2013, private construction projects increased 1 percent, reflecting a 2.6 percent increase in residential construction and a 0.7 percent decrease in nonresidential construction.     Public construction projects in December 2013 decreased 2.3 percent.     During 2013, construction spending was 4.8 percent higher than it was during 2012.  (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have issued a proposed rule to extend the compliance date for the crane operator certification requirement by three years to Nov. 10, 2017. The proposal also would extend to the same date the existing phase-in requirement that employers ensure their operators are qualified to operate the equipment.   OSHA issued a final standard on requirements for cranes and derricks in construction work Aug. 9, 2010. The standard requires crane operators on construction sites to meet one of four qualification/certification options by Nov. 10, 2014. After OSHA issued the standard, various parties raised concerns about the requirements. After conducting several public meetings, OSHA decided to extend the enforcement date so the certification requirements do not take effect during potential rulemaking or disrupt the construction industry.  (From NRCA) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211

“The recent acceleration in economic activity sets the stage for a much better 2014 for both the broader economy and the nonresidential construction industry." —ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu.  December represented the end of a three-month winning streak for nonresidential spending growth. According to a Feb. 3 release by the U.S. Census Bureau, nonresidential construction spending fell 1.3 percent on a monthly basis and 1.1 percent on a yearly basis in December. Spending for the month totaled $573.07 billion on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis.  (From ABC) Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified Construction Lawyer Trent Cotney, P.A. 1211 N Franklin St Tampa, FL 33602 www.trentcotney.co m