JE Dunn awarded north and south regional military projects

JE Dunn Construction has been selected by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to manage the $24 million design-build Mountain Home Air Force Base clinic modernization project in Idaho as well as the $21.7 million design-build Eglin Air Force Base pharmacy in Florida.

The Mountain Home Air Force Base clinic modernization will support the 366th Medical Group and entail renovating 41,165 SF of multiple departments.

Construction at Mountain Home AFB will begin in 2020 and will be complete in July 2021.

JE Dunn and Hoefer Wysocki have partnered to design and construct the Eglin Air Force Base pharmacy renovations for the 96th Medical Group. This is the 21st project award within the U.S. Air Force Healthcare Facilities Modernization Program. 

“We are thrilled to continue building our federal healthcare portfolio alongside a trusted partner, Hoefer Wysocki,” said JE Dunn group manager, Craig Stearns.

The first phase of renovations includes the outpatient and inpatient pharmacies in the hospital. The satellite pharmacy addition and renovation, which will be designed around an Rx auto-fill robotic system, are included in the second phase of renovations.

The scope includes other MEP work, architectural improvements, and improving the existing classrooms and administrative offices.

This will be the second project JE Dunn has worked on at Eglin. The firm completed the hospital realignment in 2016.

JE Dunn has designed and constructed over $800 million in healthcare facilities at more than 13 military bases across the nation to support the U.S. Air Force Healthcare Facilities Modernization Program over the past 10 years.

Other local partners on the AFB projects include BHC Rhodes, Branch Pattern and Henderson Engineers.

Catching up with 2018 CREW KC President Debbie Swearingen

Debbie Swearingen is approaching the midway point of her tenure as 2018 president of CREW KC, an organization that works to advance the success of women in commercial real estate. The VP of commercial banking for Community America Credit Union updated MetroWire Media on key initiatives and the year so far.

MWM: What kind of changes are taking place at CREW KC on your watch?

Swearingen: This year we did a true strategic plan. In our first meeting, we talked about vision and where we wanted the organization to go. We are focusing on four main areas of programming, membership, communications, and community connections. 

MWM: How are you changing CREW KC programming?

Swearingen: We want to resonate in the industry with great programs that bring value to our members but also support our community. In April, our quarterly luncheon covered development and history around the Troost corridor, so we are holding programs that elevate what our community is about by looking at our history, present day and future.

MWM: CREW KC is typically viewed as a networking organization for women. How do you see that changing?

Swearingen: Another goal for this year is to build and retain a diverse membership with an emphasis on key decision makers. We are working to increase diversity by gender, age and race while growing our presence throughout the community. A lot of people don't know what we are all about so we are working to improve our branding and become more well known in the community.

MWM: How do you measure success?

Swearingen: One of our strategic goals for this year is to build meaningful and purposeful relationships, both personal and professional. Being a member of CREW KC isn't necessarily about the business you get but also about personal growth and building relationships. That's important for achieving balance.

MWM: What do you hope people remember about your year as CREW KC president?

Swearingen: I wanted to put the fun back into CREW so we also remember what we are here for. When you do that, business comes. We've added lot of new activities for members and prospective members, including taking a party bus to FunkyTown, networking at Chicken N Pickle and a casino night hosted by BHC Rhodes for recruiting new members. We're doing things a bit differently to get to know people on a more personal level.

California developer plans 1M SF business park in Lee’s Summit

On March 31, the Lee’s Summit City Council will deliver its decision on whether to hand over the lead development role for an 85-acre tract of land to California-based Westcott Investment Group. The developer is planning a 1 million-square-foot business park, consisting of commercial office, warehouse, and light manufacturing space. If all goes as planned, Westcott would commence construction on the first phase of 200,000 square feet by the summer of 2017.

Last week, Westcott asked the Lee’s Summit City Council to approve the assignment of development rights granted to Exergonic LLC in 2011 through a public/private partnership development agreement. The City Council voted to direct staff to draft the documents necessary for the assignment to Westcott to take place; That assignment heads back to City Council on March 31 for approval.

Westcott is associated with Diede Construction Inc., a firm with 15 million square feet under management. The local team for Westcott includes Aaron March with White Goss, Daren Fristoe, Jon Plaas, Danny Potts of Klover Architects, and Ryan Elam of BHC Rhodes.

Westcott CEO Steve Singh said Lee’s Summit is a perfect development fit for his firm.

“Approximately two years ago, Westcott began the due diligence process on a potential site for a development in Lee’s Summit. We were drawn to the area by the city’s core strengths of premier health care, schools, parks, historic downtown and the need for additional locally-based employers,” Singh said. “Through our discussions with Exergonix, we determined this specific location as the optimum starting point to deliver the first step in an expansive mixed-use development, ultimately resulting in the creation of new jobs. With our proven development track record, we look forward to partnering with the City of Lee’s Summit and bringing The Grove at Lee’s Summit to fruition.”