Project on the "Flash Track"

Klewin Building Company, of Norwich, Conn., broke ground on a 718,000-sq.-ft., 26-story spa hotel in Niagara Falls, N.Y. that will house 600 rooms, three restaurants, a full-service spa, a multipurpose theater and 35,000 sq. ft. of gaming.

Under a process that Klewin calls "flash-tracking," the project is expected to be completed in 18 months. To complete the project, Klewin and its partners will have crews working 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Under a design build contract, Klewin constructed Phase I of the Seneca Niagara Casino, 333,000 sq. ft., in 100 days.

IBEX Building Home Depots

IBEX Construction is building Home Depots store on 59th Street and 23rd Street in Manhattan.

The new stores are part of Home Depot's expansion plans in Manhattan and other urban downtowns. The 59th Street store, located in Vornado's mixed-use Bloomberg Tower, will be taking advantage of one of the world's busiest retail environments. It will be geared toward pedestrian traffic and have multiple levels.

The 59th Street store will be approximately 100,000 sq. ft. on four levels and include space for design showrooms on the mezzanine and lower levels. It was expected to be completed in August.

The 23rd Street store will have more than 120,000 sq. ft. with a street-level showroom, a lower-level retail floor and a mezzanine featuring design-related products. It was expected to be completed in mid-July.

To date, 49 units have been completed and sold. The estimated time of completion for the balance of the houses or Phase II, entailing 52 additional units, is spring 2005. The houses range in size between 2,000 and 3,000 sq. ft. and are priced from $475,000.

The developers are constructing and donating a 10,000-sq.-ft. extension to P.S. 43, the district's public school, for use as a day care center.

Chelsea Development Going Up

The Chelsea Club, a 12-story, 42-unit condominium at 438 West 19th St., is under construction.

The project is being developed by MOeJOe Developers, LLC. Karl Fischer Architects is the exterior design architect for the project and Andres Escobar & Associates is the interior design architect.

The units will range in size from 700 to 1,600 sq. ft., with most featuring 100- to 1,000-sq.-ft. balconies or terraces. The units will initially be offered in the high $400,000s through $1.8 million. Sales of the condominiums are slated to begin late summer 2004 will occupancy in summer 2005.

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