The scope. Over 24 months, Balfour Beatty built 36 four-story villas, four maintenance buildings and parking areas. Each villa totals 35,072 square feet and is divided into 14 units, for a grand total of 504 units and 1.27 million square feet. In addition to the construction, Balfour Beatty also managed the site and civil work packages.

Quality Control. The Balfour Beatty team developed trade-specific quality control checklists that required subcontractor self-inspection and sign-off. In addition, the team inspected all critical building elements. This procedure of self-checks exceeded the requirements of local inspection authorities, threshold inspectors and design consultants.

Challenges overcome. Two months into construction, the Gulf Coast was hit by Hurricane Katrina. In anticipation of shortages, Balfour Beatty stocked up on materials and stored them in a warehouse to lock in current market prices and prevent possible delays in the project. In spite of many design and schedule changes, the company put $1,122,895 of work in place per week, completed the project ahead of schedule, and saved the client $4.7 million through value engineering.

The project has received industry recognition in the form of a regional ABC EIC Eagle award and nomination for Project of the Year. But much more important is the satisfaction of successfully concluding a large and challenging project for a happy client. Rob Hale, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Ginn Development, wrote, “The end result is a testament to teamwork, commitment and the team’s ability to work through challenges ... The project has set new standards for the Ginn Company condominium projects.”