Gov. Andrew Cuomo has presided over the groundbreaking of a $1.5 billion expansion of the Jacob Javits Convention Center.
The March 1 event follows work that began on the building’s foundation in December 2016.
Workers will begin to raise steel beams for the transformer building, which will provide power for the building.. This early start will enable LendLease Turner, the construction consortium that was awarded the design-build contract in February, to jump-start work on the expansion, the governor’s office said in a news release.
“The Javits Center expansion is creating thousands of construction jobs and supporting the growth of New York’s hotel, restaurant and tourism industries for decades to come,” Cuomo said.
The building’s roof level will have a horizontal canopy intermixed with green-screen elements and planters that support climbing vines. Acoustic panels will also be placed intermittently along the north edge of the building roof to mitigate rooftop unit noise.
In January, a design-build team was chosen to lead the expansion project following a evaluation process with five technical committees to evaluate competing proposals in five areas: proposed design; project schedule; project plans and approach; MWBE/SDVOB approach; and the bidding team’s experience and financial strength.
A sixth committee evaluated the bidders’ financial proposals, and a selection committee, comprised of government and industry leaders, received the committee’s evaluations and chose LendLease Turner as the design-build team, with TVS as the design firm.
In addition, Tishman Construction and Lehrer LLC, both chosen through a Request for Proposals, will assist the convention center development corporation in managing the project.
The panel’s recommendation was approved by the Board of Directors of the New York Convention Center Development Corporation, a subsidiary of ESD that owns the convention center’s property, oversees major construction work at the facility, and issued the Request for Proposals in June 2016.
$1 billion in funds for the project have already been appropriated and proceeds from bonds sold last year by Empire State Development will finance the balance.
