HardHatChat

NOVEMBER 19, 2012

Michigan Avenue in Chicago is seeing a mix of high-end retailers and value retailers, a trend that will continue in 2013 in markets across the country. To do this, let’s focus on the famed Magnificent Mile in Chicago. The value stores bring more foot traffic, more revenue and eventually more new stores to the area.

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Commercial Retail Chicago Construction 289

HardHatChat

DECEMBER 9, 2014

As we close out another year, we wanted to take a look back at the commercial construction trends that defined 2014 and highlight some of the highs and lows. Overall, this was a great year for the commercial construction industry as commercial construction activity and revenue were up considerably.

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Commercial Retail Construction Chicago 192

HardHatChat

MARCH 28, 2011

Now that spring is officially here, I wanted to reflect on the Chicago retail construction trends and news we’ve seen so far in 2011. From the new commercial construction projects we know are in the pipeline, to what I heard at the recent Bisnow Chicago Retail Summit , I am cautiously optimistic. Good News/Bad News. Stay tuned.

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Retail Chicago News Bidding 220

HardHatChat

DECEMBER 22, 2011

As 2011 comes to a close, it’s time for us to look back on the commercial construction building trends , news and projects of this past year and share our thoughts on the highs and lows in the industry. In fact, our commercial construction budget work was back to 2008 levels. And some firms had 11 GCs bid on jobs. I was wrong.

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Commercial Union Retail Construction 207

HardHatChat

NOVEMBER 24, 2015

As we close in on the finish line for 2015, we’re happy to report it’s been a terrific year at Englewood Construction and for many others in the commercial construction industry. We are presently working with several real estate developers to create this type of environment in Chicago and its suburbs, as well as New York and Los Angeles.

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Commercial Construction Los Angeles Schedule 180

HardHatChat

AUGUST 12, 2014

Recently, Englewood completed the 23,000-square-foot Harry Carays 7th Inning Stretch and Chicago Sports Museum at Chicagos famed Water Tower Place. Commercial general contractors are finding plenty of opportunities in the office, apartment and hotel construction markets right now. Design savings. Scheduling. Time is money.

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Chicago Commercial Construction Remodeling 278

HardHatChat

JANUARY 18, 2011

January is a great time to create a commercial construction checklist of resolutions to help improve your commercial real estate business in the coming year. Don’t always take the lowest bid. Schedule a commercial construction preventive maintenance visit. While bidding on the commercial construction remodel of a 500+ sq.

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Commercial Bidding Negotiation Construction 263

HardHatChat

MAY 18, 2011

as mall owners and retail tenants figure out who will be responsible for commercial construction services in a “build to suit” shopping center construction space. This space has virtually been untouched by a landlord’s commercial construction general contractor. Vanilla box.

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Commercial Retail Construction Bidding 184

HardHatChat

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

Bill Di Santo, president of Englewood Construction (second from right), and the Englewood accounting team receiving recognition from the Chicago Chapter of the Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA) for participating in their 2014 Accounting Intern Program. Unfortunately, that time has not come yet. million jobs.

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Commercial Construction Chicago CFMA 120

HardHatChat

FEBRUARY 14, 2013

As commercial construction news reports say business continues to pick up, we are happy to see some new faces around the office at Englewood Construction. That’s right; we are adding staff to our national commercial general contracting firm in what has been a very robust period of activity.

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Commercial News Retail Construction 259

HardHatChat

DECEMBER 17, 2010

I’ll say it again, 2010 was a rebuilding year for the commercial construction industry. So I’ve created a commercial construction checklist for what we considered the highs and lows of 2010 commercial construction trends. There are still far too many distressed commercial properties on the market. Low – Green building.

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Commercial Retail Construction Chicago 196

HardHatChat

NOVEMBER 30, 2011

It’s that time of year when our team predicts the 2012 commercial construction trends – from what’s on tap for Chicago retail construction to national restaurant construction and hospitality construction. Currently Savers has three Chicago-area locations, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see that number increase in 2012.

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Commercial Retail Chicago Construction 179

HardHatChat

DECEMBER 20, 2016

With December here, it’s time for our annual post reviewing some of the positives – as well as a few of the challenges – that shaped the commercial construction business in the past year. Here’s a look at our top 2016 commercial construction “highs” and “lows”: Low: Mall Retail Tenants Choose Local over National.

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Commercial Retail Construction Chicago 156

HardHatChat

DECEMBER 15, 2009

At the beginning of 2009, I don’t think anyone, including a national commercial general contractor like Englewood Construction, was prepared for the twists and turns that would face the commercial construction industry. Low – Chicago losing the 2016 Olympic bid. Jobs that used to have 2-3 bids, now have 10.

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Commercial Retail Construction Chicago 196

HardHatChat

SEPTEMBER 30, 2009

There’s no doubt that local businesses will have much to celebrate if on October 2, 2009, Chicago wins the 2016 Summer Olympics bid. But just how would Chicago hosting the Olympics affect the city’s restaurant and retail construction activity ? I say back the bid! Here are a couple of my predictions…. Bill Di Santo.

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Chicago Retail Bidding Permits 120

HardHatChat

APRIL 12, 2016

The other day I was talking with a Chicago-area client who didn’t realize Englewood is a national general contractor that manages national commercial construction projects across the country. He asked me, “You only have offices in Chicago, right? So how does that work?”. Knowing the Local Terrain. Tapping Into Technology.

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Commercial Contractors Management New York City 120

HardHatChat

NOVEMBER 30, 2011

It’s that time of year when our team predicts the commercial construction trends for the upcoming year– from what’s on tap for Chicago retail construction to national restaurant construction and hospitality construction. Currently Savers has three Chicago-area locations, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see that number increase.

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Commercial Retail Construction Chicago 120

HardHatChat

OCTOBER 7, 2010

Commercial construction contractors can save clients thousands of dollars by knowing the right time to buy certain materials. I heard a Home Depot ad on the radio recently targeted to commercial general contractors that made me pause. On the surface, the ad is true – buying building materials in bulk is cheaper.

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Commercial Materials Construction Contractors 235

HardHatChat

NOVEMBER 10, 2009

I’ve got to ask, are you still competitively bidding the bulk of your commercial construction projects? And here’s why: 1. Negotiating with a commercial contractor allows you to split unforeseen cost savings. Reviewing bids can take weeks while negotiating takes days. Really, you are? Interesting…. Ahem, right guys?

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Commercial Negotiation Bidding Contractors 168

HardHatChat

JULY 19, 2011

It’s a mixed bag of commercial construction news for shopping center developement. Make sure the commercial construction team you hire not only has shopping center construction experience, but also retail and restaurant construction experience. You want a general commercial contractor who understands all parties’ needs.

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Commercial Retail Change Orders Construction 201

HardHatChat

JANUARY 19, 2010

The same can be said of the relationship between commercial general contractor and subcontractor. We GCs may think we’re the star, but we all know the most successful commercial construction project s require great subcontractors. Without the best bid, we can’t win the project.

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Commercial Bidding Construction Retail 192

HardHatChat

FEBRUARY 25, 2011

We were pulling a feeder cable through a Chicago retail construction project when we heard the explosion. At one point or another, even the best Chicago commercial construction contractors are susceptible to a construction site demon. Find the original general commercial contractor of your project site. Case closed.

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CSI Commercial Site Retail 136

HardHatChat

AUGUST 21, 2012

The difference is we weren’t on vacation; we were bidding new restaurant and hotel construction jobs to keep up with the thousands of new residents moving to the area due to the oil boom. Wouldn’t it be easier to hire a local commercial contractor? a flagship store in a vertical mall like Water Tower Place in Chicago….

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Commercial Contractors Retail Construction 214

HardHatChat

DECEMBER 22, 2015

Writing our annual “Highs and Lows” commercial construction blog post was a bit more difficult this year because, on the whole, 2015 was pretty great for Englewood Construction and many others in the construction industry. Yet despite all its positives, 2015 wasn’t without its commercial construction challenges.

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Commercial Industrial Retail Construction 120

HardHatChat

MAY 4, 2010

At the end of 2009, I wrote a blog post called “Commercial Construction Trends to Watch in 2010.” National retail construction contractors are also seeing niche retail brands feed off each other like the new Little Miss Match store and the American Girl Place store in Water Tower Place shopping center in Chicago, both projects we worked on.

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Retail Commercial Construction Remodeling 159

HardHatChat

JUNE 21, 2012

Observations and Conversations about Commercial Construction, Development and Management. I get asked a lot about commercial construction trends. I get asked a lot about commercial construction trends. Recently, we were performing a pre-construction analysis for a retail client on a Chicago-area property.

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Retail Commercial Chicago Leases 216

HardHatChat

JANUARY 27, 2011

As suggested in my 2011 commercial construction trends blog post, there seems to be a rise in new restaurant construction, particularly among franchise restaurants. In fact, Crain’s Chicago Business just reported that Moe’s Southwest Grill has sold restaurant franchise agreements to open 10 new units in the Chicago market.

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Chicago Construction Negotiation Agreement 244

HardHatChat

AUGUST 11, 2010

It’s time to revisit another prediction I made last year in my blog post Commercial Constructions Trends to Watch in 2010 — Outside the Big Box. As for grading myself on that commercial construction trend, I would like to borrow a page from President Obama and say “incomplete.”. Chicago Place shopping mall retrofit.

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Retail Chicago Commercial Michigan 209

HardHatChat

MARCH 17, 2015

All signs have been pointing to a robust commercial construction pipeline, with activity consistently on the rise. In fact, last year, the value of all commercial construction contracts signed in the Chicago area was close to $10.6 Based on our backlog and client activity, we predict record growth in 2015.

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Design Commercial Budgeting Budget 120

Pro Builder

OCTOBER 7, 2021

Builders of residential and commercial properties are learning more about refineries and resin plants than they ever cared to know thanks to unprecedented supply chain issues. Uncertainty about the availability of materials is complicating business for construction companies as they try to price out bids and meet project guidelines.

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Materials Guidelines Chicago Texas 97

HardHatChat

OCTOBER 15, 2009

Whether you’re a bank with distressed commercial real estate assets on your balance sheet, or you’re a real estate investor/developer who purchased a foreclosed commercial property, creating a viable workout plan can be an uphill battle. I’m not going to sugar coat it.

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Commercial Bankruptcy Retail Contractors 149

HardHatChat

MARCH 28, 2017

By their very nature, flagship locations almost always pose a wide range of circumstances beyond what you might expect in a typical retail or restaurant construction job – which is why it’s imperative that brands turn to a trusted commercial construction firm experienced in navigating the flagship location construction process.

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Retail Construction Chicago Commercial 156

HardHatChat

MARCH 19, 2012

While the construction best practices we shared might be common knowledge with our experienced Chicago restaurant construction clients, I realize novice restaurant owners or entrepreneurs opening fast-casual franchise restaurants may not know how to create a successful restaurant construction schedule.

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Schedule Construction Budgeting Budget 258

HardHatChat

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

How did you file the documents for your last commercial construction project? And without anything to print, then there’s nothing to mail – no more fees for overnight bid-request mailings. How Developers Can Decrease Operating Costs by Thousands of Dollars. How would you like to “find” thousands of dollars in your operating budget?

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Commercial Documentation Construction Project Management 120

HardHatChat

SEPTEMBER 24, 2009

Key Steps Commercial Developers Can Take to Ensure Their Contractors are Financially Stable. Whether you’re hiring a general contractor , architect, engineer or some other consultant, their ability to pay their subs directly and on time affects the success of your commercial construction project. So how do you avoid all of this?

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Commercial Banking Lien Construction 120

Buisness Facilities Contributed Content

JUNE 6, 2014

President Obama has awarded Chicago a $70 million grant from the Department of Defense to build a $320-million Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute. Mark Kirk, representatives from UI Labs and World Business Chicago, and various industry partners who supported the winning bid were at the White House for the announcement. “We

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Chicago Innovation Design Illinois 45

HardHatChat

APRIL 20, 2010

For those familiar with Chicago retail construction , think back a couple of years to when the dated Orland Park Place interior mall underwent construction and turned itself inside out to became one of the area’s most successful outdoor shopping centers. Let the structure dictate the shopping center design. Bill Di Santo.

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Retail Construction Commercial Chicago 191