Beacon News

Once again, the summer has flown by in the blink of an eye! Last week my wife and I dropped off our 2nd oldest daughter at Syracuse University (SU) for her first year at college. While dropping off a teenager at college can be bittersweet, for me it's always fun and exciting to see the buzz of activity as young people move into their dorms and head into the next phase of their lives. The enthusiasm and excitement of the students stepping out on their own for the first time is energizing. Plus, it's eye-opening to see the incredible, modern facilities that many college campuses have today.

As a construction consultant who has worked on many school projects, I am always interested to see the new facilities that colleges have built (or are actively building) on their campuses. University leaders recognize that they must invest in state-of-the-art facilities to stay competitive and attract the top staff and students. For example, Syracuse is in the middle of building a $6-million dollar "Innovation Center" as part of their College of Engineering & Computer Science. The new Allyn Innovation Center will be a hub for student services and will include an "invention accelerator" to support students as they design, prototype and pitch innovative products with real-world applications.

SU has also started on a major construction / renovation project to create a state-of-the-art new athletic training/academic complex focused on the needs of SU's student-athletes (projected to cost $25 million or more). In 2020, the university completed Phase 1 (roof replacement) of a $118-million stadium renovation project which is completely transforming and modernizing SU's 49,000-seat domed stadium, the JMA Wireless Dome (formerly "The Carrier Dome"). The stadium is the largest college facility of its kind in the U.S. (used for football, basketball, lacrosse, and other events, such as concerts).

This summer has been a busy one for everyone here at Beacon as we continue working on projects across the U.S. Earlier in August, I had the pleasure of attending and presenting at the ABA Fidelity & Surety Law (FSLC) "Midwinter Meeting" held in Nashville (see Beacon's Aug. E-news). The meeting was postponed until the summer because of Covid. Myself and other members of Beacon's team had a great time in "Music City" catching up with old friends, clients, and partners in the Surety Claims world. Please check out Beacon's full E-News for information about recent projects, industry news, and other upcoming events.