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Tourism
gives construction a boost
Tourism
is the new buzzword in Virginia construction.
Related
story:
- Virginia’s top
construction projects
by
Lisa Antonelli Bacon
Virginia Business
October
2004
As
Virginia approaches the 400th anniversary of the arrival
of the first English settlers at Jamestown, “tourism”
is the new buzzword in Virginia construction, and not
unexpectedly. After 9/11 when tourist attractions, leisure
destinations and almost every facet of the travel industry
struggled, Virginia’s tourism stayed the course
with hotels and other hospitality-related facilities
continuing with projects as the clock ticked toward
the 2007 Jamestown commemoration. In anticipation of
large numbers of tourists, some hotels such as The Williamsburg
Inn have already completed projects while others are
in the midst of expansions. Throw in convention center
projects and road improvements intended to make travel
and commutes easier, and the importance of tourism on
Virginia’s building industry is hard to miss.
The activity is in keeping with national trends, says
Steve Vermillion, executive director of Associated General
Contractors of Virginia, “One in eight employees
nationally are currently involved in something related
to leisure. And we’re seeing more of it here.”
And if retirement equates to leisure, capital investment
in continuing care retirement communities and resort-style
residential communities boosts Virginia’s figures
even more. The number of building contracts, as well
as total value, grew this year, with new construction
contracts totaling $8.3 billion at mid-year, up from
$7.6 billion in June 2003, according to figures from
the associated general contractors. In addition to tourism-related
projects, hospital expansions and large mixed-use developments
round out this year’s annual list of large construction
projects in Virginia.
Hampton Roads and Richmond seem be the main beneficiaries
of the leisure and tourism boom, while in Southwest
Virginia construction starts this month on the largest
project in Roanoke Valley history — a $105 million
consolidation of in-patient services at Carilion Roanoke
Memorial Hospital. Next year should bring another significant
project for the area — the beginning of construction
of Virginia’s Coalfield Expressway, a 51-mile
divided highway expected to boost commerce and tourism
in the state’s remote Appalachian region.
As the Williamsburg corridor gears up for the 2007 commemoration,
new hotels are popping up, and old ones are expanding.
Most new projects of any size incorporate one or more
restaurants, a little retail and plenty of leisure opportunities.
For instance, Great Wolf Lodge, a four-story, log-sided
resort with 302 guest rooms will offer a giant tree
house, an indoor water park and thousands of square
feet in meeting space. It’s scheduled to open
in the spring of 2005 in Lightfoot. Since The Great
Lakes Companies, based in Wisconsin, use their own contractors,
Virginia builders didn’t get a cut of the action.
Estimates on the projects range from $30-$48 million.
Also preparing for biggest-ever crowds is The Williamsburg
Lodge and Conference Center. It’s undergoing a
$70 million renovation scheduled for completion in 2006.
The project will add 130 new guest rooms for a total
of 323, and increase conference center meeting space
to a total of 45,000 square feet. The renovation will
complete more than $100 million in hospitality improvements
in recent years. To keep up with the competition, the
luxurious Kingsmill Resort and Spa in Williamsburg recently
renovated nearly half of its 420 guest rooms and suites.
Just a short drive from Williamsburg, York County is
redeveloping its scenic Yorktown waterfront with a $10
million, 21,000-square-foot commercial project called
Riverwalk Landing. Specialty stores and restaurants
and two piers that can accommodate recreational boats
and commercial vessels are under construction and expect
to be open in 2005. Richmond is also sprucing up for
the state’s quadricentennial celebration. The
construction of a new hotel, performing arts complex
and many other improvements to its downtown streetscapes
are underway and slated for completion by 2007.
Major commercial projects also made headlines over the
past year. This month brings the opening of pharmaceutical
giant Boehringer Ingelheim Chemicals Inc.’s $260
million expansion in Petersburg, the largest single
corporate investment on record for the city. Also, construction
continues on several hospital projects including St.
Francis Medical Center in Chesterfield County. Surgeries
are already scheduled for this month in the center’s
newly completed medical office building, part of Bon
Secours’ $75 million medical center.
Several huge projects are already on the drawing board
for 2005. Netherlands-based APM Terminals plans to build
the country’s first privately developed container
terminal on the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth at a cost
of $450 million. Victory Crossing, a $350 million mixed-use
retail and office park, also in Portsmouth, is scheduled
to break ground next fall. And Colorado-based Coors
Brewing Co. will invest $160 to $190 million in the
construction in Elkton of its third U.S. brewery.
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