Virginia Beach claimed high honors in this year’s ranking of the state’s largest construction projects, nailing down the top two spots with the new Town Center in Pembroke and a 14-story retirement highrise along the Chesapeake Bay. Northern Virginia, the state’s perennial construction powerhouse, retained its regional pre-eminence with four major office complexes and an expansion of the Washington-Dulles International Airport — all within the top 10. Rounding out the list were a plethora of downstate manufacturing facilities and distribution centers, supplemented by a training center and airport renovation. Almost absent were the large road building projects that had dominated the list in previous years.

The top 20 list reflects nearly $1.6 billion in total construction activity. That lags the total for last year’s list, which logged in at almost $2.3 billion. But the smaller price tags should not obscure the fact that construction in Virginia is booming. There’s no slow-down in sight. The smaller total probably reflects Virginia Business’ guidelines for compiling the list, not any underlying weakness in the economy. We tally our list from projects in which ground was broken between Sept. 1, 1999, to Sept. 1, 2000. Our figures do not include construction from ongoing projects announced previously (see chart), or projects that were announced but not commenced. Among the mammoth construction jobs that could begin later this year or in early 2001 are a $3.4 billion expansion of the Washington-Dulles airport and a $1.97 billion project to widen the Woodrow Wilson Bridge across the Potomac River from six lanes to twelve, and a 28-acre office complex that will consolidate 1,700 Capital One employees in Northern Virginia. Furthermore, the mega-projects don’t represent the full range of construction. "As far as square footage is concerned, 1999 [was] the biggest year for Northern Virginia in at least the last twenty years," says Diana Farina of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. Construction this year, she adds, could meet or exceed last year’s record-breaking 21.7 million square feet.

Virginia’s rural areas and smaller cities are sharing in the bounty. Tower Automotive’s $50 million manufacturing plant will customize frame rails for trucks in Botetourt County, the biggest plant expansion in the county’s history. In Danville, another $50 million project will combine the resources of Goodyear Tire Corp., the city of Danville, Danville Community College and Danville Public Schools. As evidenced by the Goodyear training facility and the Tower Automotive plant, which will rely upon e-commerce to speed product delivery, there is a strong technology component even to traditional bricks-and-mortar projects. Back in Virginia Beach, even the retail- and office-oriented Town Center may feed off of technology-related growth. Virginia Beach is targeting high tech firms to spur economic development, says Mark Warner, project development manager for the city of Virginia Beach. "The high-tech industry is driving major expansion, because of new ways of doing business through e-commerce and dot-coms."

The Town Center in Virginia Beach makes the top of the list this year, with a two-phase construction project underway in the Central Business District/Pembroke area of the city. The first phase broke ground in June of this year, and includes a 14-story office tower, parking garage and office buildings encompassing 93,000 square feet. The Virginia Beach Development Authority invested $22.2 million in the project, with $40 million in private funding.

Phase two construction is scheduled to begin later this year and will include a second high-rise office tower, a two-story cinema complex with stadium seating, a hotel, a department store, office/retail space and a parking garage.

The economic impact is projected to exceed $45 million in its first year, rising to $210 million in its ninth year.

The developer is Town Center Associates, a partnership between Chesapeake-based Armada Hoffler and Richmond-based Divaris Real Estate.

Virginia Beach’s Westminster Canterbury, a retirement community, is completing a 14-story high-rise beside the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia Beach, adjacent to two existing structures. Construction should finish in 2002. A similar project is underway at the company’s Lynchburg location.

The engineer is Landmark Design Group of Virginia Beach; SFCS in Roanoke is the architect; W.M. Jordan of Newport News is the building contractor.

This government contractor will consolidate 300 employees in a 300,000-square-foot building in McLean. Construction of the new structure should be complete in June 2001, with renovations to an existing, 310,000-square foot structure to follow.

The project manager is Spaulding and Slye and the architect is Ai, both of Washington D.C.

Gannett Co. is relocating its headquarters to Tysons Corner. The 25-acre facility will span 800,000 square feet, housing 1,781 employees in one of the largest construction projects in the Washington Metro area.

The exterior of the building will appear to change colors when viewed at different angles. The facility will include a health club with tennis, volleyball and basketball courts.

The designer is Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates of New York. Hines Interest LP of Houston is the contractor and CBM Engineering Inc. is providing engineering services.

Intel Online Services began construction of its Internet data center in Chantilly in September of last year, and it was completed in April 2000. The first location for an Intel service center on the East Coast, the 73,000-square-foot facility will employ up to 250 people, mostly new hires. Thousands of computer servers will operate from this facility near Dulles Airport in Fairfax County, and physical and network security will be increased.

A $200,000 grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund will assist Fairfax County with site preparation.

The company is a subsidiary of semiconductor chip maker Intel Corp., which plans to invest more than $1 billion in three additional facilities overseas.

This project, which began in February, includes three different upgrades to the Washington-Dulles baggage handling system. The first is the demolition of existing commuter gates, to be replaced with a 95,000-square-foot baggage-conveyance facility. The second is a 30,000-square foot inbound baggage handling facility for United Airlines. The last combines the construction of baggage tunnels, baggage claim facilities and ticket kiosks.

Completion is scheduled for December 2002. The designer is Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP of Chicago; the structural engineer is Ammann & Whitney of Boston; the mechanical /electrical engineer is H.C. Yu & Associates of Richmond.

In August, the airport received approval from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority for a $3.4 billion renovation and expansion project that will include the construction of an underground rail system, additional parking, a new concourse and a new runway, to be completed by 2006.

This four-lane highway will extend 5.1 miles around the town of Clarksville. Eleven bridges will be constructed, the most prominent of which is a steel structure spanning Buggs Island Lake. The 4,900-foot bridge will stand 60 feet above the lake. This project is part of an ongoing upgrade to Route 58, the major transportation artery of Southside Virginia. Initiated in 1989, this program will four-lane the entire 500-mile highway and bypass the business centers of innumberable small towns. This leg of the project is scheduled for competion in fall of 2003.

The contractor is Morse Diesel Civil LLC of Lawrenceville, N.J.

Sentara CarePlex, an outpatient facility, is the site for the new Sentara Hampton General Hospital project. The 194-bed hospital will be built on 19 acres, 380,000 square feet, surounding the existing complex. Providing outpatient services and acute inpatient care, the new hospital is expected to accommodate 70,000 emergency patients and 120,000 patients in its first year.

The project broke ground in December 1999 and is expected to be completed in 2002. Odell Associates Inc. in Richmond is the architect and the contractor is a joint-venture between W.M. Jordan of Richmond and McCarthy Building Cos. of St. Louis. The engineer is Kimley-Horne & Associates of Chesapeake.

To bring 2,200 employees in McLean and Reston to one location, Litton PRC is constructing a campus headquarters in McLean, with plans to complete two buildings by 2002 and leaving room for future construction on a third.

The 15-acre lot, one mile from the current headquarters, will include a 570,000-square-foot facility with a conference center, lab and demo center, an exercise facility and jogging paths. A proposed third building would accommodate 1,000 more employees.

The architect for the project is Ai of Washington, D.C., which is also providing engineering services.

This project will create 150 new jobs in Virginia this year. A corporate headquarters and warehouse were built in Richmond, and call centers were constructed in Ashland, Norfolk and Herndon, totaling 106,152 square feet. The company has laid more than 200 miles of fiber optic cable and expects to add another 248, giving the company the capability to serve a market of more than 2.2 million business and residential customers.

The architect is Baskervill & Son of Richmond. The contractor is Commercial Plaster & Drywall Inc. in Ashland.

The Norfolk airport’s new arrivals terminal is part of a multiphase renovation and expansion. The 265,000-square-foot complex will house baggage claims and car rentals. A pedestrian bridge and people mover will connect the new terminal with the old one, while a baggage tunnel will link the basement levels of the two facilities.

Centex Construction in Fairfax is the contractor and Shriver and Holland, based in Norfolk, is the architect and engineer.

Boehringer Chemicals Inc. is planning a three-phase project to produce ingredients for prescription drug products.

Phase one will create 104 jobs in Petersburg. It includes construction of a new manufacturing bay, upgrades to existing manufacturing facilities and projects to treat air and waste discharge in compliance with state environmental guidelines. Construction should be completed in early 2002.

The architect and engineer is Jacobs Engineering of Philadelphia. The construction manager is Yonkers Industries in Raleigh, N.C.

Goodyear Tire Corp., the City of Danville, Danville Community College, Danville Public Schools and the state government are all chipping in for the construction of this state-of-the-art training facility.

The Center, based in a refurbished Sears building, will train maintenance technicians for Goodyear and other manufacturers in the Danville area, including Dan River Inc.

Goodyear is investing more than $113 million in equipment and technology.

Danville Public Schools’ Maintenance Department is the contractor and Dewberry & Davis of Danville are the architects.

The largest plant expansion in Botetourt County history, the company will construct a manufacturing plant adjacent to their existing one, built five years ago. The new facility will feature e-commerce technology and will manufacture customized frame rails for trucks.

Construction of the 250,000-square-foot plant began in June and should be completed by 2002.

A 2 million-square-foot distribution facility will initially create 230 jobs, with 170 more to be added over the next 30 months, in James City County.

The Governor’s Opportunity Fund will provide a $700,000 grant for site acquisition and preparation.

The distribution site will house inventory for 61 stores and 10 Sam’s Club stores in Virginia.

This Zurich, Switzerland-based company will create 150 new jobs at a production site in Chesterfield County.

The new facility will manufacture specialty packaging for industries such as cosmetics and tobacco. Construction will begin this August. The Virginia Department of Transportation will contribute $300,000 to defray road construction costs.

The Naval Nuclear Fuel Division of BWXT in Campbell County is undergoing an expansion that will create 320 jobs over three years.

The facility produces plate-type research reactor fuel elements for colleges, universities and national laboratories. Company officials say the project should spur business development along the U.S. 460 corridor in Lynchburg.

Henry County is the first distribution site in Virginia for this multi-million dollar clothing design company. Nautica plans to build a state-of-the-art facility for its Ladies Jeans clothing line. The plant will create 375 jobs.

The Governor’s Opportunity Fund will provide $1.5 million to Henry County for site preparation.

This distribution facility, the second the company has built in two years, will cover 778,000 square feet on a 155-acre site in Prince George County near U.S. Interstate 295 and U.S. Route 460. Approximately 325 new jobs will be created.

The center will house up to $40 million of inventory, shipping to more than 300 Ace Hardware stores in the Mid-Atlantic region. Ace Hardware was awarded $300,000 from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund.

The developer is Panattoni Development Co. of Sacramento, Calif. and the architect is McKinney and Co. of Ashland.

This broadband services company is building a Technical Center in Prince William County, creating 1,000 jobs.