Southeast City Scoop: Raleigh Construction Starts

After years of annual increases, volume of Raleigh contracts to decline in 2020

Dodge Data & Analytics’ pre-COVID forecast predicted across-the-board declines in volume of total contracts.

City Grill

Robbie Ferris
President & CEO
Sfl+A Architects

As elsewhere, the COVID-19 pandemic has added uncertainty to Raleigh’s construction industry. “The good news is public projects that have started design are continuing and projects we are bidding are coming in very close to the budget,” says Ferris, who adds that low interest rates could help incentivize owners to move forward with projects through 2021. Prior to the pandemic, “we were happy with three subcontractors showing up to bid a particular trade; today we have six to eight bidders in many trades on bid day. Clearly, subs are concerned about backlog.”

Firm in Focus

Sfl+A Architects
333 Fayetteville St., Raleigh
CEO: Robbie Ferris
Employees: 20
Founded: 1982
What’s New: The firm’s recently completed Jones County PK-12 School project in Trenton, N.C., which features 100,000 sq ft of solar panels, is projected to generate 75% more energy than it consumes.