Fort Worth-based Haws & Tingle Ltd. recently completed construction of the Midlothian Conference Center and the Senior Activity Center for the Midlothian Community Development Corp.

Included in the $5.3 million campus-style complex was a two-story, 34,000-sq.-ft. conference center with meeting rooms, auditorium with theater-quality sound system and a catering kitchen suitable for serving groups of up to 250.

Among its interior features is an expansive spiral staircase, fabricated and installed by Haws & Tingle personnel. The staircase consists of steel, exposed stained concrete and cherry wood.

Along with the 9,350-sq.-ft. seniors facility, both structures showcase a combination of cultural stone, glass curtainwall and painted, geometrically detailed exposed concrete walls and columns.
A centrally located custom-built stone fountain greets visitors as they enter the complex.

Miner-Dederick Begins Main Street Square Project

Houston-based Miner-Dederick Construction recently broke ground for the $8.9 million Main Street Square project, a choreographed water show and "transit super stop" which will transform three downtown Houston blocks into a pedestrian park.

The park will surround the new 37-story 1000 Main office tower, a project on which Miner-Dederick served as general contractor.

Three branches of the city's underground tunnel system will converge at 1000 Main, where escalators will take pedestrians to street level into the square. The area will also be home to two station platforms for the METRORail, which is scheduled to begin running on Main Street in February 2004.

The centerpiece of the Main Street Square will be a block-long water fountain and reflection pool that will include a state-of-the-art, choreographed light show highlighting 61 "pop" water jets that will arch over the top of the METRO track. The track itself will be slightly elevated above the reflection pool, providing the illusion that the train rides on water. Granite benches and paving accompanied by seasonal landscaping will provide a pleasing environment for taking in the water and light show.

Design of the square was created by New York-based Ehrenkrantz, Eckstut & Kuhn while architectural lighting design was created by Fisher Marantz Stone of New York City, the firm that created the World Trade Center lighting tribute.

Construction Starts For RadioShack Headquarters

Groundbreaking ceremonies were held in mid-April for the new RadioShack corporate headquarters in downtown Fort Worth.

Construction has already gotten under way on the $250 million building on a site where the Ripley Arnold Apartments were located. The site is two blocks north of the Tandy Center where RadioShack is currently headquartered.

The Beck Group of Dallas is the general contractor for the project with the Addison-based Staubach Co. serving as construction manager. The architect is HKS Inc. of Dallas, the consulting architect is Fort Worth-based Gideon Toal Inc. and the civil engineer is Carter & Burgess Inc. of Fort Worth.

Denton Hospital Expected To Begin Construction

Texas Health Resources, which owns a number of hospitals in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, is teaming with Triad Hospitals Inc. to build a $100 million hospital in Denton.

According to the Dallas Business Journal, construction of the five-story, 272,538-sq.-ft. Presbyterian Hospital of Denton is scheduled to begin in late summer with a completion date anticipated in 2005.

The new hospital will feature 142 private rooms and a 20-bed intensive and critical care unit. The facility will also have a 28-bed emergency department, nine large surgical suites, two cardiac catheterization laboratories and 11 labor and delivery suites.

Ascension Group LLP of Arlington will serve as the design firm for the project.

Florida Firm Begins Project For U.S. Navy In Waco

The civil infrastructure project delivery group of Jacksonville, Fla.-based design-build firm The Haskell Co. this month begins construction on a project for the U.S. Navy in Waco.

The group designed a new vehicle maintenance and supply facility for the U.S. Navy. The Waco facility is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

Haskell has been involved with several projects for the Navy, including the recently completed renovation of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, at the southern tip of Maine.

Coronado To Construct New Facilities In Irving

Fort Worth-based Coronado Builders Ltd. was recently awarded a $5.89 million contract to construct a new enclosed swimming pool complex and senior citizens center for the City of Irving.

The Heritage Square Senior Center & Indoor Aquatics Facility is designed at 42,700 sq. ft. and will house two stories above grade and one story below grade. F&S Partners of Dallas is the project architect while the structural/civil engineer is Dallas-based Brockette-Davis-Drake Inc.

The complex has a target completion date of November.