Arrighi Simoneaux awarded $15 million Bogue Chitto State Park

Arrighi Simoneaux LLC, a Baton Rouge-based commercial construction company, was recently awarded a $15 million contract by the State of Louisiana for the construction of Bogue Chitto State Park in Franklinton, La.

Arrighi Simoneaux will oversee all aspects of the construction of the state park. The company will construct access roads and RV parking areas and create nature trails, campsites and recreational areas for campers and park visitors.  Arrighi Simoneaux will also construct 18 cabins and four on-site facility buildings.

Construction began in November and is expected to be completed by April 2009.
Arrighi Simoneaux was also awarded a $12 million contract to construct a softball complex for the LSU women’s softball team.

Arrighi Simoneaux will oversee construction of the 1,269-seat stadium at the new Tiger Park.

Construction will include a  locker room, team lounge, meeting facility, equipment room and indoor batting cages.

Arrighi Simoneaux will also be responsible for all aspects of the construction project to include the site preparation, grandstands construction, buildings, field construction, fencing and concrete work. 

The new stadium will be located on Skip Bertman Drive, across from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, and is slated for completion by December 2008.

Ryan Gootee General Contractors lands hurricane rehab project

Ryan Gootee General Contractors LLC recently announced that it has been awarded a $5.5 million contract at One River Place to perform exterior repairs as a result of Hurricane Katrina. Work includes re-roofing of the building, replacing exterior joint sealants in the stone façade, adding a fire-safing barrier at the perimeter of each floor, renovations to each exterior balcony to allow the addition of accordion storm shutters. 

This project will take nine months to complete.

RGGC will also begin working at the American Red Cross New Orleans headquarters on a $1.8 million contract to repair interior flood damage.

The work includes gutting and rebuilding the first and second floors of the facility, adding generator power to support operations of the facility during emergencies. It will be a seven-month project.

LREC office building to mask interstate noise

Construction is under way on a new, 14,000-sq-ft office building for the Louisiana Real Estate Commission, replacing an existing 1980s era office building.  The program consisted of a large hearing room surrounded by a very efficient arrangement of offices and support spaces.

The building was designed by Remson|Haley|Herpin Architects and is located on Interline Drive just off Interstate 12. 

The Hearing Room in the previous building was located on the interstate-side of the building.   The roar of the traffic was so loud that testimony could not be heard or recorded.

Therefore, the new building will feature a formal Hearing Room located in the center of the building constructed of a double-wall system and ringed by offices.

Additionally, a series of angled, sound-isolation walls will protect the outside offices by acting as baffles to reflect the traffic noise. The careful arrangement of the walls blocks views of the interstate and direct views to landscaped areas of the site. 

The contractor for the job is MBD Construction of Baton Rouge. Construction began in May and is expected to be completed by April.

DOTD breaks ground on La. 16 Widening Project

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) broke ground recently on a project to widen La. 16 from Denham Springs, La., to Watson, La.

Speakers at the groundbreaking included DOTD Undersecretary Michael Bridges; State Sen. Huelette “Clo” Fontenot; State Rep. Mack “Bodi” White; State Rep. Dale M. Erdey Jr.; and Livingston Parish President Michael “Mike” Grimmer.

“This project is extremely important because it will give Livingston Parish much needed relief from traffic congestion in this growing community,” said DOTD Undersecretary Michael Bridges.

“It is also a very exciting project because this is the first capacity project being built using surplus funds given to us during the 2007 Legislative Session.”

The 2-mi project involves constructing two 12-ft travel lanes with a 10-ft outside shoulder and 6-ft inside shoulder on La. 16 from just north of La. 1025 to just south of La. 1019.

The new roadway will have four lanes with two through lanes in each direction separated by a raised median. A $7.7 million contract was awarded to Barriere Construction Co. LLC of Baton Rouge to perform the work.

VOA announces design-build contracts for Jackson Barracks

The Orlando office of VOA Associates Inc., architecture, planning and interior design, recently announced that the firm is working on two projects at Jackson Barracks, New Orleans, La.: a new, 53,338-sq-ft 61st Troop Command Readiness Center and a new, 5,568-sq-ft Fitness Center.

VOA was commissioned to serve as designer of record for the design-build projects, providing full architectural design services in partnership with Walton Construction of Harahan, La. Both facilities are currently under construction and slated for completion by October 2008.

According to VOA Partner, Ted G. Fery, AIA, the two-story, 250-person Readiness Center will serve the multiple functions of administrative, storage, training and assembly activities of the 61st Troop Command.

“The building is sited at the historic Jackson Barracks and is aligned with its “sister” facility, the 141st Field Artillery Battalion, sharing service areas and a paved plaza for formal drills, loading and deployment of military vehicles and equipment,” Fery said.

“Through careful manipulation of brick materials combined with cast stone accents, the design exhibits respect for the historical context while relating to human scale.”

Walton Construction Co. gets Navy contracts for New Orleans buildings

The New Orleans Division of Walton Construction Co. LLC was recently awarded the contract to design and build Package 1A  in Plaquemines Parish, La.

This $48 million project is scheduled to begin this month on the seven buildings totaling 120,000 sq ft and is expected to be completed by 2010.

The Package 1A project is a combination of new buildings, additions and renovations and will include administrative buildings, medical center, fitness center, child development center and library.

The project team includes owner Department of the Navy - Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast, general contractor Walton Construction and VOA Associates Inc.

Walton Construction Co. LLC, which maintains full-service offices in New Orleans, Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield, Mo., and Dallas, is ranked among the top contractors in the United States by Engineering News Record.