Design Build, the Future?

The primary design method used in the construction industry is design-bid-build, which is where a Developer hires a design team to complete design documents and also hires a contractor, under a separate contract, to build off those documents. An alternative to this approach is a design-build contract which is where the Developer hires a single entity, often times a contractor, to take on the building and design responsibilities for their project. In a recent study performed by FMI, they are projecting by 2021 the design-build delivery method to reach nearly half (44%) of the construction put in place which would be an increase of 18% from today. That is a rather large increase in only a three-year span. Why the shift? Design-build promotes more of a collaborative/team approach, working together to meet the developer’s schedule and budget, whereas the more conventional design-bid-build, tends to be a little more contentious between the...

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The Douglas Company Announces Completion of Stonecrest of Rochester Hills Senior Living Community

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, has completed construction of the new Stonecrest of Rochester Hills Senior Living Community in Rochester Hills, Michigan. Stonecrest of Rochester Hills marks The Douglas Company's second senior living project completion with owner and developer, NorthPoint Development. "Stonecrest of Rochester Hills is a beautiful complement to the area, and we are proud to have been part of this project team," said Preston Knecht, Project Coordinator of The Douglas Company. The upscale 78,342 square foot assisted living and memory care community, is comprised of 87 private apartments; including a single-story, 32-unit memory care building in addition to a two-story assisted living building offering a total of 55 assisted living one and two bedroom suites. This $15 million upscale, elegant community features a variety of amenities for seniors; including an arts and crafts room, beauty salon, movie theater, cyber cafe, and exercise room. The exterior layout consists of an outdoor...

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Baby Boomers — The New Wave in Senior Living

The baby boomers, the massive increase in births that occurred between 1945 and 1964, started turning 65 in 2011.  The population of people over 65 stood at just over 41 million people in 2011.  With approximately 10,000 people turning 65 each day, the over-65 population is projected to grow to over 85 million by 2050. The baby boomers have shaped the housing market for many years, and as baby boomers approach retirement, there is no doubt, they will shape the senior housing market for years into the future.  Market studies indicate that as baby boomer age, they want to maintain an active lifestyle either within their own community, or a community near their adult children.  While many seniors prefer to stay in their homes as long as possible, a higher percentage of the baby boomer generation, compared to the previous generation, desire an easier “carefree” lifestyle. Senior (age restricted) apartment communities, villas,...

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YourLife / Clarity Pointe Specialized Memory Care Community

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, is excited to announce completion on the construction of Clarity Pointe Specialized Memory Care Community in Tallahassee, Florida. Clarity Pointe Specialized Memory Care Community is a 59,694 sq. foot $11.2 million community, specializing in treating those with Alzheimer's and other memory impairments. The Douglas Company worked with Olson Land Partners and architect, Leo A. Daly, to provide an engaging, tranquil community. The 74 unit, Clarity Pointe-Tallahassee community is constructed in four sections, each with its own theme, ensuring that every neighborhood has an individualized, homelike quality. The interior has a bright, open layout with many elegant finishes. Amenities include activity rooms for arts and crafts, and therapy classes, a salon and spa, theater room, putting green, and an interior courtyard that is beautifully landscaped with butterfly gardens and a rock waterfall. "We are proud to have been part of the project team to bring the vision of this...

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Construction Project Managers Versus Other Industries

The title of Project Manager gets thrown around a lot today in our industry, and many others. Since the generally-accepted definition of a project is "A temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result", that's understandable. This broad-reaching definition written by the Project Management Institute can define a lot of different undertakings in so many industries, and since every project must have someone in charge, the title Project Manager is easy to assign. In some cases even, it's a de-facto title that someone assumes by accident or default in an organization, perhaps even on top of a functional role they already play within a company. In the construction industry, however, this is not a title that is taken lightly - nor should it be. A construction Project Manager is a specialized individual that takes the title through purposeful education and training, deliberate and hard work, and only after...

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The Douglas Company, General Contractor, Announces the Completion of the Beach House Assisted Living and Memory Care Community

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, has announced it has completed the construction of the Beach House Assisted Living and Memory Care community at Wiregrass Ranch in Wesley Chapel, Florida. Beach House Assisted Living and Memory Care is a 96,000 sq. ft. assisted living and memory care community just outside of Tampa in Wesley Chapel, Florida. This $14.65 million project was completed in November 2017, making it the second project completed for Prevarian Senior Living, and among many with the architect, Architectural Concepts, Inc. The two-story facility offers 100 units, all of which take into consideration the comfort and safety needs of the potential residents. The community has many resort-like amenities with an open and sun-lit style layout in the Wiregrass Ranch area that offers shopping and restaurants nearby in a dynamic neighborhood atmosphere. The three landscaped courtyards promise plenty of time for relaxing in the beautiful Florida sunshine. There are endless opportunities...

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Better, Not Bigger

There is a large need in the senior housing market to develop and build affordable communities. The current economy mandates, due to higher interest rates and high construction costs, the need to design and develop senior facilities that produce better, not bigger, designs. The best senior community operators are looking at downsizing all of their new senior properties to respond to the current market conditions and to increase competition in most markets. As many young Americans are attracted to micro-units, so too will seniors. The key to having an affordable design that will compete in the market is controlling the square footage of the living units, and the common space, while still providing top tier amenities. The Douglas Company is working on developing a prototype design for an assisted living and memory care communities that controls the square footage of the entire building footprint, but still provides a design that feels like...

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The Douglas Company is Proud to Announce the Completion of Construction of Peregrine’ Landing at Onondaga Hill

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, is proud to announce the completion of construction of Peregrine' Landing at Onondaga Hill, a Memory Care Community located in the beautiful residential area in Onondaga Hill of Syracuse, New York. The new $7.5 million memory care community is owned by Peregrine Senior Living / Onondaga Senior Real Estate, LLC and features 64 units offering specialized memory care for residents with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. Designed by MWT Architects PC, the single story, 35,760 square foot community features numerous on-site amenities, including a chapel, ice cream and soda shop, full-service commercial kitchen, common space living rooms, restaurant-style dining rooms, salon, therapy rooms, spas, community gathering areas, and enclosed courtyards. "With our experience in senior housing construction, we are proud to be part of the team involved in creating this new senior living community in the Syracuse area. It offers an unsurpassed standard of memory...

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Cost Increases Continue

In late June, Turner Construction Company released its updated cost index for the second quarter of 2018. Turner has studied this data for decades, taking into account labor rates and productivity, material prices, and the competitive condition of the marketplace. This makes it unique to the many other indices available to our industry. The data from this month continued the quarterly trend of rising costs since 2014. In fact, costs were measured at 5.63% higher than where they were for the second quarter of last year. The quarterly increase from just three months ago is 1.68%. While these numbers don't show a change in trend, they remind us of an important reality: It is very difficult for contractors to hold pricing in these market conditions. That's also not to mention the volatility the recent tariffs have introduced to our marketplace, of which the impact is yet to be fully understood. Our only...

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Construction Complete on The Tower on the Maumee Luxury Apartments

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, is pleased to announce the completion of construction on The Tower on the Maumee luxury apartments, located on the Maumee River in the downtown area of Toledo, Ohio. This $21.7 million project was the redevelopment of the top 11 floors of a 30-story office tower. With construction complete in March 2018, The Douglas Company, owner George F. Eyde Family, LLC, and Quinn Evans Architects hope to breathe new life into this "glass city" historic landmark. This new residential development offers elegance and sleek design. One hundred six apartments provide spacious floor plans between 719 and 1,265 square feet with one or two bedrooms. All units come equipped with stainless steel appliances, including a full-size washer and dryer, granite counter tops and islands, Italian tile floors, and 7-foot panoramic windows affording stunning views of downtown Toledo and the Maumee River. The Tower on the Maumee, formerly the Fiberglas Tower,...

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Excellence

Jay Z defines excellence as one, two or three decades of high-quality output.  While I am not known to quote rappers, there is something to that.  Now in my 5th (hard to believe) decade of construction, I have seen a lot.   And excellence is an inside job.  Some people, many at the Douglas Company, live this philosophy without even knowing it.  They have an innate commitment and are dedicated to doing their best each and every day.  There is a price to pay for this.  Other aspects of your life may suffer.  You will certainly lose sleep and probably some hair.  But there is an inner peace from doing this.  You know that you have done your best at the end of each day, and better than most.  And you get the appreciation from clients and teammates who are counting on you to “contribute to their success”. I have learned much...

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Senior Living for the Middle Market

Lately, as I talk with our senior living clients, many of them seem to be thinking about the same challenge.  Similarly, that same challenge seems to be the topic of seminars at recent industry conferences, as well as the subject of several articles published in many of the trade magazines.  How do we provide senior living solutions to the middle market?

For much of the past thirty-five-plus years, development and growth of the senior living industry have been off the charts.  Everyone understands that as the baby boomers age, we will be hard-pressed to meet the demand, however currently there continues to be concern and discussion that the market is becoming overbuilt.  But upon further study, one will quickly discover that most of the growth and development has been either on the high-end or on the affordable/subsidized end of the market.  Very little new development has been targeted at the middle...

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Prompt Payment and Risk Management

An interesting study was published recently on the impact of slow payments in the construction industry. It estimated that the average payment cycle for subcontractors is 54 days, and that is costing the industry over $40 billion dollars each year. That's a staggering figure, but one that makes sense when you consider the cost of construction rising and the amount of financing it takes for subcontractors to stay in business. This added cost comes from a number of sources:

  • Finance charges from lines of credit subcontractors must take out to afford materials.
  • Late fees assessed by suppliers when subcontractors can't pay bills due to non-payment.
  • Lost revenue from liquid assets being stuck in accounts receivable versus short-term investments.
  • The inability for subcontractors to obtain discounts from their vendors for prompt payment.
While this stresses the importance of making prompt payments on construction projects for the benefit of subcontractors succeeding, there is...

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A New Primrose Memory Care Community in Lancaster, Ohio

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, announces the completion of the new Primrose Memory Care Community in Lancaster, Ohio. The $5 million memory care community, owned by Primrose Retirement Communities, was thoughtfully designed for memory care residents facing the early stages of Alzheimer's and dementia. Primrose Memory Care Community, designed by WAI Continuum, includes high-end architectural and design features, bringing a distinguished level of finish and detail to memory care in the Lancaster area. It is designed to address the level of care needed by memory-impaired individuals while creating an atmosphere for them to engage in an active lifestyle. The 24,912 square foot community features 24 private suites and amenities, including a spa and beauty salon, coffee bar, library, dining and living rooms, fireplace, and an interior courtyard with a fountain to create a homelike atmosphere. "This marks the third successful completion with owner and developer, Primrose Retirement Communities. Our partnership is truly about...

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The Douglas Company Announces Two Internal Promotions

The Douglas Company, General Contractor, is pleased to announce the promotions of Connor Casper and Landon Kessler to the position of Project Manager. In their new positions, Connor and Landon will directly manage projects from early development through project completion and will be responsible for overall cost, schedule and budget evaluation, as well as, all construction coordination. Connor Casper promoted to Project Manager. Connor Casper is an alumnus of Bowling Green State University where he received his Bachelor of Science in Technology, Construction Management, and holds a LEED Green Associate Certification. Connor started his career with The Douglas Company as a co-op fulfilling all 3 of his internships and was hired as a full-time employee in 2013 as a Project Coordinator, progressing to Assistant Project Manager and currently accepting his new position of Project Manager. Landon Kessler promoted to Project Manager. Landon Kessler is an alumnus of The University of Toledo where...

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Peers

I just came home from a peer group.  It was a great experience, but it made me ask myself what a peer really is.  Everyone in this industry who succeeds is competitive and committed to excellence.  Excellence requires learning, which is at the core of the purpose of a peer group.  A peer is defined as “a person who is equal to another in abilities, qualifications, age, background and social status.”  By this definition, it seems impossible to truly be a peer. All of the people and the businesses in the peer group are different.  We build different types of projects for different types of clients.  We take different risks and have different business models.  We have different org structures and strengths and weaknesses.  But this is inherent and necessary to value in a “peer” group.  We complement each other and learn from each other and get better by spending time...

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Historic High Rise — Renovation Projects

The renovation of a Historic high-rise building into a functional multi-use building that meets all the current code requirements for a high-rise building is a very complex and difficult process. If the building being renovated is on the National Register of Historic Places, State and Federal Tax Credits are being utilized as one of the project funding sources by the owner.  The existing exterior appearance of the building can be restored but will be required to exactly match the architectural features of the building when it was first constructed. In addition to the challenges of matching the existing exterior façade, if there is any unique interior historic design element in the building, those items can be restored but must be incorporated into the new design of the building. The fire rating of the existing structure, to meet current code requirements, presents one of the biggest challenges to the design and construction teams.  There...

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