My morning commute takes me past the former St. Luke's Medical Center on Shaker Boulevard at East 116th. For years, I have watched as the elements have taken their toll on a beautiful building with great views of the city.  Finally, after a three-year delay caused by financing difficulties, life is returning to St. Luke's.  With $53 million of work spread over three phases, a developer will renovate and restore the central, western, then eastern wings and add further vigor to a corner recently improved with the Harvey Rice School and Library.  RTA will also soon be improving the rapid station at this location. The mix of residential, educational, and transit options at that corner will further solidify this improving neighborhood. Read more in this article.

Rudolph Libbe, Inc. recently completed work as a design-build contractor for the Toledo Zoo's Solar Walk.Stretching for more than a quarter of a mile, the $14.7 million project involved the construction of snaking solar panel arrays that will provide 100,000 kw per year.  To learn more, review this article in Builder's Exchange or watch this video.

Did you read about today's snow melt spilling into the Cuyahoga River? BASF's pervious concrete could have mitigated the problem. Featured in this month's Green Builder Magazine (link), the pervious concrete allows water to pass through the paved surface rather than spilling into overburdened sewers. Visit BASF's web site to learn more.

In addition to speaking at the following events, my colleagues and I will be presenting in-house lectures on a variety of legal topics for our clients, trade associations, and other groups.  If you would like to schedule a seminar at your firm or for your group, please let me know.  

April 4, 2011   Commercial Collection Strategies (Toledo, OH)

My colleague Melissa Jones will be discussing litigation basics in a seminar dedicated to Commercial Collection Strategies sponsored by NBI.  Follow this link to learn more.

April 12, 2011    Construction Lien Law (Independence, OH)

My lecture on public project lien law is both entertaining and educational. Honest. If you do not think that's possible, come find out at this seminar sponsored by Lorman. If you do not want to pay full price to test me on that, then follow this link to get 20% off.  Enter priority code 15800 and discount code F2716129.

May 23, 2011  Labor & Employment Seminar (Cleveland, OH)

Our Labor & Employment Group will host its annual seminar for our clients in May.  If you are interested, e-mail me and I will provide additional information.

Here are links to primary sources of industry and economic data so you can form your own opinions about market trends.     

Residential Construction and Sales 

Data from the Census Bureau on housing permits, starts, and completions is available here. The NAHB's web site provides a wealth of other data from its research here. The monthly S&P/Case Shiller Housing Price Indices are available here.  

Industry-wide Construction Data

Data from the Census Bureau on construction spending is available here. It will cost you a few bucks, but McGraw Hill's forward-looking market research is available here.