Industry News

Ground was broken on Saint Mary's College's new Syufy Performing Arts Center in May. The 7,000-sf building will house programs in dance and music in addition to providing space for individual and group instrument practice. A scene design and storage facility is included in the project. The building, slated for completion in 2003, is named after regent and trustee Raymond J. Syufy.

The General Services Administration has awarded lead contractor Dick Corp. of Pittsburgh and local joint partner Nibbi Bros. the $141.5-million contract to build a 600,000-sf office building in San Francisco.

The City Court of Atlanta has selected the Atlanta office of Turner Construction Company to build a new $55-million courthouse. Construction of the six-story, 200,000-sf facility is slated for completion in August 2003. The project is being developed by Atlanta Capital Courts Facilities, which will supervise program management and design-build responsibilities for the project.

Eli Lilly & Co. is prepared to invest as much as $1 billion in its planned synthetic insulin and drug manufacturing plant in Virginia. The pharmaceutical giant will employ up to 700 people at the new 600,000-sf Prince William County plant.

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) are seeking approximately 200,000 sf, housed together in preferably a historic building. This arrangement, pending congressional approval, is leading the NEA and NEH to consider space in the Woodward & Lothrop project, a 550,000-sf former department store. The "Woodies" building, built in phases from 1902 to 1926, could be ready for move-in a year following the signing of a pre-lease.