Wednesday, November 2, 2016

On Line News Now - October 31, 2016 Edition


OLN


CONSTRUCTION PLANS TO COME DURING ALLIANCE EVENT 

The eagerly anticipated Construction Forecast Seminar will be held tomorrow, Tuesday, November 1.

Leaders of 25-30 private and public construction agencies will give a one-of-a-kind report on their capital plans at Forsgate Country Club, Monroe. The insider information will be made to a sellout audience of business, government and labor representatives. Registration will begin at 8:00 a.m. and the presentations at 9:00 a.m. 

Reports will range over a wide variety of projects from private and independent to state colleges and universities, local schools to transportation. 

Click here to register. 

"WHERE THE WORK IS!" CITES BILLIONS IN CAPITAL INVESTMENTS

More than two hundred business and labor executives got a key update on billions of dollars worth of work at New Jersey's regional authorities. The New Jersey Alliance for Action's "Where the Work Is" conference focused on infrastructure, construction, maintenance and repairs needed in the tri-state area.

Gerald T. Keenan, Alliance Executive Vice President, stressed that the income for infrastructure projects does more than offer a direct impact to New Jerseys' economic health and that both provide improvements to the overall quality of life.  

James Starace, Chief Engineer of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, cited the Port Authority's ten-year capital plan.  

Len Rustam, Engineering Program Manager for the Delaware River Port Authority, reported on the status of projects for the Betsy Ross, Ben Franklin, Walt Whitman, Commodore Barry Bridges and the Patco High Speed Line.

Roy Little, Chief Engineer of the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, reminded the audience that the Scudder Falls project will provide for substantial completion of  the $20 million Stage 1 in 2018.

John Rotolo, Chief Engineer of the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission, cited Superstorm Sandy damage for the need to repair a power plant at $118 million and the flood wall at $75 million.

Assistant Chief Engineer Dave Hoppenjans reported on repairs by the Delaware River and Bay Authority estimated at $404 million until at least 2021.

BOUND BROOK FLOOD CONTROL PROJECT IS CELEBRATED

Completion in Bound Brook of the $143 million flood mitigation project was hailed as both a financial boom and safety protection for community and its residents. Governor Chris Christie said the project, which spanned nearly 17 years, will produce immediate benefits. 

Bound Brook sustained $2.5 billion in flood damages and eight deaths over the last century.  Christie stressed that the project marked a commitment by all levels of government and is part of a larger flood plan to protect the region. 

The federal government covered 75 percent of the cost of the project and the rest was split between the state and local funding.  

The NJ Alliance worked for well over a decade along with the Green Brook Flood Control Commission, various congressional members, freeholders and local officials in getting federal and state support for this project. 

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON ONE THEATRE SQUARE IN NEWARK
               
Construction began on One Theatre Square in downtown Newark, a $116 million, twenty-two story high-rise residential development.   When completed in 2018, the building will sit directly across from the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (PAC) and Military Park.
                
Plans call for the building to feature 245 units, 12,000 feet of retail on the first floor, and a rooftop parking garage.



HUDSON TUNNELS GAIN FEDERAL OPTIMISM 
               
A more optimistic timetable for construction of two Hudson River rail tunnels was provided recently by a major federal official.
               
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx reported that the project has been designated a priority for accelerated environmental and permitting review toward a 2019 beginning. He said the designation could shave a year or more off development time.
                
Speaking at a news conference in Penn Station, New York, Foxx did not offer details of how the cost would be paid by New Jersey, New York and the federal government.




SAVE THE DATE
               
11/1/16 - Construction Forecast, register here

11/14/16 - Celebrate....TTF, NJ Statewide Transportation conference, register here.

12/5/16 - Pipelines for Prosperity, register here.

12/15/16 - Energizing the Economy, register here.  


CELEBRATE....TTF 
With the new gas tax approved by the state Legislature and Governor Christie, officials can now move forward on Department of Transportation Capital work.  
The new legislation will fund an historic eight year, $16 billion Transportation Trust Fund financing plan to repair bridge, road and transit improvements infrastructure.  .
Be there for Celebrate TTF, the NJ Statewide Transportation Conference when we honor the people and groups who succeeded in making the case for the TTF renewal.  Our featured speaker will be NJ DOT Commissioner Rick Hammer. 

Click here to register.

TRANS-HUDSON COMMUTING CAPACITY STUDY REPORT 
The completed Trans-Hudson Commuting Capacity Study Summary Report and Appendices were posted to the Port Authority's website.  Below are the links to the Summary Report and Appendices. The Appendices provide supporting documentation encompassing the following topics:

A - Interstate Bus Network - Operational and Service Strategies
B -  Multi-Modal Network Strategies
C - Technology Implications and Opportunities
D - Summary of the Capacity Study Expert Workshop
E - Travel Demand Management Strategies


JCP&L MOVING CENTRAL JERSEY HEADQUARTERS
Bell Works has its latest tenant: Jersey Central Power & Light, which is moving its central New Jersey regional headquarters to the Holmdel office complex next year.
The utility, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy that serves 1.1 million people in the Garden State, said it has signed a 10-year lease for 64,000 square feet at the four-building, 2 million-square-foot former Bell Labs complex at 101 Crawfords Corner Road.
JCP&L's lease at its current Red Bank regional headquarters expires next year. Nearly 200 engineering, billing, human resources, outage restoration and support staff, as well as management, will be moving by early summer 2017, the utility said.

JCP&L said a major part of the relocation effort is moving its central region dispatch office, including the system operators and support staff who monitor the electric system and dispatch personnel as needed in the event of a service interruption.

HACKENSACK UMC TOPS US NEWS RANKING OF NEW JERSEY HOSPITALS 
Hackensack University Medical Center was ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the top in New Jersey and fourth in the New York region. 
Other top three rankings were Morristown Medical Center and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.  The rankings were based on a variety of patient outcomes and career-related factors such as patient safety and nurse staffing. 

ALLERGAN TO USE EDA INCENTIVES FOR NEW MADISON HQ
Over $58 million in state incentives will be used by Dublin-based Allergan to consolidate current New Jersey based operations and develop a new US headquarters in Madison by the end of 2017. 

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority voted to approve Allergen for a 10-year $58.2 million Grow New Jersey Award.  Allergan currently maintains its U.S. headquarters in Parsippany and also has offices in Bridgewater, Jersey City and Rockaway.  Allergan said it is attracted by New Jersey's Vibrant health care ecosystem." 

NOVO NORDISK HEADQUARTERS SOLD FOR $305 MILLION
               
Novo Nordisk's North American headquarters in Plainsboro was sold for $305 million to a Korean investment firm.  The brokerage firm of Cushman & Wakefield said it was the largest single asset sale in New Jersey to date in 2016. 

FORMER AT&T HEADQUARTERS IS SOLD
               
The 400,000-square-foot office building in Morris Township that once served as a regional headquarters for AT&T has been sold.  The new owners reported that they intend to reposition the building known as Kemblel Plaza I at 340 Mount Kemble Avenue.



PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
  • Kevin Zavaglia was appointed by Verizon Wireless as President of its northeast market which is headquartered in Morristown and oversees business functions in the ten-state market including New Jersey and New York. 
  • Christopher Porrino was confirmed by the State Senate as New Jersey's Attorney General.  Porrino had been serving since June as acting attorney general. 
  • Dr. Bernard McSherry was named NJ City University's founding dean of the NJCU School of Business. 
  • Kenneth R. Fulmer, P.E., was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Urban Engineers. 

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