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V O L . X X V N O. V I I I A P R I L 1 5 , 2 0 1 9 26 R E A L E S TAT E / C O N S T R U C T I O N / D E S I G N F O C U S Homes residence in Augusta and renova- tions on the Maine Correctional Facility in Windham will start this summer. When the Maine Veterans' Home residence was approved by the Augusta Planning Board in 2017, the cost estimate was $76 million. By the time Cianbro's heavy equipment rumbled onto the site last month, it had risen to $90 million. As a construction manager, part of Cianbro's job is to stay on top of costs and make the project work, Tompkins says. Cianbro late last month issued RFPs for subcontractors on the prison expan- sion, which has been in the works for more than a decade. It includes seven new buildings totaling 189,000 square feet of new construction and 128,000 square feet in renovations at the 50-acre site on Route 26. In 2016, a $149 million bond issue was approved for the project — how much the costs have increased since then won't be done until the bids come in. Groundbreaking is expected in June. Cianbro will work hand-in-hand with the Portland architecture firm SMRT, which designed the project. "We'll keep it within reach of what we know we have to spend," he says. Cianbro manages costs with "lean building" principles, which involves pre-fabrication offsite, carefully choreo- graphed movement of materials to a site and constant assessment over where a project is and what's needed. Cianbro is also in a position to help out subcontractors when labor numbers fall short. e company's Cianbro Institute, in Pittsfield, offers 75 workforce-training courses. "We can self-perform some work on a project," Tompkins says. "Construction managers generally don't perform the work, unless it makes sense to do it." e company also has fabrication shops, which help with the cost of steel. "We're in a little bit of a unique posi- tion in that we're equipped to mitigate [some of the issues]," he says. The affordable housing developer Szanton Co. also has a busy year planned. e company is just wrapping up the Hartley Block on Lisbon Street in Lewiston, a mixed-use building that has 63 residential units and 4,000 square feet of retail. Across the river, in Auburn, ground has been broken on the 53-unit 48 Hampshire project. » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E DESIGN | BUILD | MAINTAIN 866.782.0200 | www.connectivitypoint.com Call cabling vendor Call securi vendor Call AV vendor Call phone system vendor Call sound masking vendor 6. Call cell amplificaon vendor Call Connecvi Point! The construction site for a new Maine Veterans' Homes facility in Augusta. P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY

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