ConDig (17-Jul-18).  A subsidiary of civil, building and specialty construction company Tutor Perini has secured a $59 million deal to build a visiting quarters at the Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina.

Under the deal with the US Army Corps of Engineers, Roy Anderson Corp will build a four-story, 149,000 square-foot building that will include 266 guest rooms, back of house areas, guest laundries, housekeeping function spaces, a multifunctional lobby, a business center, conference rooms, an exercise room and restrooms.

Tutor Perini said the building will be Certified Silver under LEED for new construction.

Construction is expected to start in the next 30 days with substantial completion slated for the summer of 2020.

The contract value will be included in the company’s third quarter 2018 backlog.

Last month, a joint venture led by Tutor Perini secured a $410 million contract to extend the Purple Line subway in Los Angeles.

Underlining the strong construction market conditions, latest figures show that US construction starts surged 15% in May from the month prior to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $783.6 billion.

The increase follows a 12% decline in April and shows total construction activity reaching the highest level reported over the past eight months, according to Dodge Data & Analytics.

The lift in May came from substantial gains for nonbuilding construction, up 39%; and nonresidential building, up 18%; as both sectors benefitted from the start of several very large projects.