Building Nevada Briefs - October 2006

Venture Corporation, California’s largest developer of privately-owned commercial buildings for small companies, recently began construction of Venture Commerce Center in Las Vegas. The four commercial buildings, located on Eastern Avenue in the Parkview Center Business Park, will have 38 privately-owned business properties ranging in size from 1,313 square feet to 3,600 square feet. The properties fronting Eastern Avenue are one- and two-story office buildings. The other two buildings feature two-story offices in the front and flex space in the rear. The buildings should be ready for occupancy at the end of 2006.

Reno-based DP Partners is proceeding with construction on the fourth building within its 102-acre master-planned business park, LogistiCenter at North Las Vegas. The 513,240-square-foot big-box distribution facility will be the largest spec building in the Las Vegas market, according to Brad Myers, Las Vegas regional manager for DP Partners. The building, situated on a 25-acre site, features a 32-foot clear-height ceiling, eight drive-in doors and 100 dock-high doors. The facility is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2007. When built out, the LogistiCenter will contain up to six distribution buildings totaling nearly 2 million square feet.

Granite Construction Company recently announced it has completed two projects totaling $16.7 million with the Nevada Department of Transportation. The projects included construction of two bridges, in cluding one of the largest roundabouts in the western United States. Improvements to the sites were designed to help relieve commuter traffic congestion from Fallon to Reno and through Fernley. Construction of two bridges, located along U.S. 50A near the Fernley/Fallon Interchange and along U.S. 95A at the Truckee Canal Bridge, began in May 2005.

Huffman Builders West recently opened the doors to its newest Las Vegas office park, Huffman Professional Plaza at Fort Apache. Located on the southwest corner of Fort Apache and Russell, the park is located in the southwest medical district near Southern Hills Hospital, St. Rose Hospital-St. Martín campus, Spring Valley Hospital and the Nevada Cancer Institute. The professional center is 100 percent occupied, with each tenant owning the office space rather than leasing it. With an estimated cost of approximately $30 million dollars, the Huffman Professional Plaza covers more than 122,000 square feet, housing 30-plus customized office spaces in 13 single-story buildings and one two-story building.

Fish Springs Ranch, LLC has awarded Reno-based Contri Construction Company a $34.6 million contract to build a water importation pipeline, beginning construction in November. Vidler Water Company is the managing partner of Fish Springs Ranch, LLC. The first step of construction includes laying 28 miles of 30-inch steel pipe, which will serve as the main transmission line between Fish Springs Ranch and the north valleys of Washoe County. Subsequent phases of the project include the equipping of six wells on the ranch, as well as construction of a pumping station, storage tanks and an electrical substation, currently being constructed by Sierra Pacific Power Co. Total construction is estimated at roughly $70 million. The imported water is earmarked for municipal use and will eventually serve new homes in the north valleys of Washoe County.