It is no secret that this recession has hit the design and construction world extremely hard. The unfortunate news of layoffs and business closures permeate throughout the industry. Yet In the midst of this economic turmoil there still are entrepreneurs and institutions moving forward with construction projects. These clients are finding outstanding construction cost value, below market land deals and access to some of the most highly skilled professionals and labor forces in the industry.
With all of the uncertainty in the marketplace, clients and financial institutions are exceedingly cautious when selecting a design and construction team for their proposed endeavor. In addition to experience, a strong financial balance sheet is a must to compete and provide assurance to those clients, equity partners, and lending institutions. Pro Con is positioned perfectly to meet these heightened requirements and provide a design-build delivery system that minimizes financial exposure and risk. With an integrated design and construction team, our clients know that their project will not exceed the guaranteed maximum price. That is an extremely valuable benefit when money is tight and margins are thin.
Over the past 35 years, Pro Con has completed hundreds of design-build projects for a wide array of clients. Our most recent ribbon cutting was the 150 room Renaissance Hotel and Spa at Patriot Place that opened to great fanfare in Foxborough, Mass. Today our customers continue to see the inherent benefits of design-build with several other projects currently underway throughout New England. These projects represent the diverse spectrum of experience Pro Con has with this delivery system. I have included a few of them as part of this article.
Brightview Concord River is a new 67,400 s/f senior living community in Billerica, Mass. that will offer personalized residential care services for seniors including independent living, assisted living, and dementia care. The $11.5 million project is being developed by Shelter Development of Baltimore, MD and represents phase one of a planned two phase development. Pro Con is the architect and construction manager for this senior living community, which will be the second Brightview-constructed community in Massachusetts and Shelter Development's first design build project. The project is on-target for a November 2009 completion.
The Weston Solutions' new design build regional office building in Concord, NH will be a highly efficient, LEED Gold green building. The two-story 21,000 s/f office building will house Weston's environmental and redevelopment professionals and serve as a visible display of the company's commitment to restoring environmentally-impaired property. The industrial building formerly on the site was demolished and 95% of the building materials were either recycled or reused on site. The "green" features include: a high efficiency mechanical system utilizing geothermal wells, photo voltaic solar hot water or electricity, light shelves and sun shades, on-site storm water management system, low-flow water fixtures, durable and renewable products, natural ventilation and a Green-Grid roof system. Site work on the project began in December 2008 and Weston Solutions is planning to occupy the building in fall 2009.
Portwalk is a dynamic mixed-use development in the heart of Portsmouth, NH's historic district. Cathartes Private Investments of Boston is the developer and Pro Con is the design-builder for the project's first phase; a 5-story, 96,000 s/f Residence Inn by Marriott Hotel with retail space. The building's first floor will include the hotel's lobby, amenity spaces, and 12,000 s/f of retail and meeting space. Floors 2 through 5 are dedicated for the hotel's guest rooms. Cathartes Private Investments is aiming to make Portwalk a LEED certified mixed-use development with the Residence Inn New Hampshire's first LEED certified hotel. The goal is to recycle 95% of the demolished waste material from the former 2-story, 86,000 s/f Parade Mall that formerly occupied the site. In addition, Portwalk will use regional & recycled materials and incorporate environmentally sensitive and beneficial strategies for the construction of the project.
When clients ask me how I differentiate Pro Con from our competitors I start with a firm whose roots go back to 1935, an integrated team of design and construction professionals providing a single source delivery, and a strong financial balance sheet...all very important qualities these days.
Pro Con Inc. is a full service architecture, engineering and construction management firm specializing in commercial, hospitality, institutional, industrial, healthcare and multi-family residential projects. The company is recognized as an industry leader and is known for their single source design-build delivery system, "The Diamond Solution".

Michael Kirn, AIA, is vice president - sales and marketing for Pro Con Inc., Manchester, NH.