DBIA’s mission is to provide the best resources available to help inform and empower our industry. In these uncertain times, that mission is even more important. As our communities fight the Coronavirus, we are working to find the best information available to help design-build teams navigate the unknown. This daily newsletter will provide the latest COVID-19 news for the AEC community.
Design-builders deliver in times of crisis and we will again.
If you have COVID-19 news impacting the AEC industry from your organization, state or community please email us.
May 26th
National
Dems Want Highway Funds, Tax-Favorable Bonds In Virus Bill-Law360. House Democrats are looking to bundle a five-year renewal of highway funding and a batch of tax-favorable victory savings bonds in an emerging economic recovery package aimed at spurring growth and countering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Covid-19 cases surge in some states as Americans celebrate Memorial Day weekend-CNN. Just because you can go to the beach or bars doesn’t mean it’s time to let your guard down. In fact, some states are seeing new spikes in coronavirus cases. Many Americans flocked to parks, restaurants and beaches to celebrate Memorial Day weekend.
States
Northeast: Coronavirus-Related Restrictions By State-NPR. This report is part of a series on coronavirus-related restrictions across the United States. View updates for Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and other states.
Florida
Florida reports 879 new cases of coronavirus after weekend of large gatherings despite pandemic-Click Orlando. On a rainy Memorial Day in Florida, state health officials reported 879 new cases of the novel coronavirus following a holiday weekend that brought massive gatherings to Sunshine State beaches despite an ongoing global pandemic.
Maine
At construction sites, work continues under a new normal-Bangor Daily News. Construction was named an essential business during Maine’s coronavirus-related economic shutdown, and work has continued for thousands of workers. However, the continued work brings added safety measures, personal protective equipment and social distancing.
Michigan
Builders say Whitmer’s work rules unconstitutional, ask court to throw them out-Detroit Free Press. A group representing builders and contractors in Michigan has filed a lawsuit over Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s orders requiring them to take actions to protect workers from the spread of coronavirus.
Utah
Pandemic could shorten Salt Lake airport rebuild by 2 years, save $300M-Deseret News. The COVID-19 pandemic nearly turned the Salt Lake City International Airport into a ghost town. Suddenly, a decades-old airport that had struggled for years with capacity issues saw daily demand shrink dramatically. However, airport officials saw an opportunity to shorten the airport’s $4.1 billion redevelopment by two years and save millions.
Industry
Construction with COVID-19: Could you need a contractual reset?-JDSUPRA. The new normal for construction is a large lurch, and lowered productivity will be unavoidable.New standards and protocols essentially add up to the familiar prescription: adequate distancing, comprehensive record keeping, due care. What that will entail varies between construction type, site size, and the nature of activity, but clearly it will not be possible to maintain levels of productivity that were being achieved before lockdown.
The pros and cons of on-site testing for COVID-19-Construction Dive. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has said employers can test employees before allowing them to enter the workplace. But whether every employer should test, and what that testing might look like, is a much more complicated question.
Lumber Prices Rebound From Coronavirus Decline-Wall Street Journal. Lumber futures have soared since the start of April. This is being driven by cutbacks at mills and brisk business at home-improvement stores.
Contact our editors if you have COVID-19 news impacting the AEC industry to share.