Better light, brighter performance, architect says

Expect improved test scores from students at the East Career and Technical Academy under construction on Vegas Valley Drive near Hollywood Boulevard, the result of better classroom lighting, the project's lead architect said.

Mark McGinty, a partner with SH Architecture in Las Vegas, said 75 percent of the high school's rooms have natural lighting from high-efficiency skylights and windows.

"It generates through visual acuities," McGinty said, citing university studies on the subject. "It helps students test better."

Occupancy sensors that manage heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems will keep students from falling asleep, McGinty said.

It's all part of the Energy Star design for the $80 million project, he said.

The east academy is one of five high schools in the Clark County School District that will focus on careers fields such as computers, engineering, media and medicine. The first one opened last year in the northwestern valley.

The school will have 217,000 square feet of classrooms, gymnasium, banquet hall, student courtyard and administrative offices in nine buildings.

The concrete-cast buildings are painted and the last roof is in place, said Debbie Schuch, project manager for general contractor Martin-Harris Construction. She's now commissioning systems to generate power and water. Completion is scheduled for fall 2009.

The Bureau of Land Management allocated 40 acres to the school district for the academy. The land sits on a fault line, which presented geographical challenges and added $7 million to the original cost estimate.

McGinty said there's no way to quantify the fault's depth. He said he "lopped off" part of the building in the design phase and moved it south to miss the fault line.

MERCER PROGRESS: Like almost every condominium project in Las Vegas, scheduled completion of The Mercer at Tropicana Avenue and Grand Canyon Parkway in summer 2008 was overly ambitious.

After weeks of permitting, the project is ready to start vertical construction, said Jim Letchinger, president of Chicago-based JDL Development. It's now set to open in second quarter 2009.

Over the next few weeks, general contractor Vanguard Construction will pour the footings for steel columns to support the 113-unit mid-rise structure. After the columns are in place, concrete will be poured for the underground parking garage. Within a month, the ground-level floor will be framed.

First American Bank of Chicago is financing the $50 million project. Units are priced from $315,000 to $790,000.

DEER SPRINGS: Jaynes Corp. was awarded the $13 million site development contract for Deer Springs Town Center, a 60-acre regional retail center being developed by Regency Centers at the Beltway and North Fifth Street in North Las Vegas.

The contract includes site work, utilities, asphalt paving, concrete and landscaping, and extending utilities to the site and building streets around the shopping center.

Home Depot, Target, Staples and PetSmart will anchor the 700,000-square-foot retail center when it's completed in 2009.

CIVIC CENTER: Panattoni Development Co. recently completed the first phase of Civic Center Corporate Park, a $25 million master-planned business park at Civic Center Drive and Alexander Road in North Las Vegas.

The company has now started on the $3 million, 39,000-square-foot second phase of the project, which features tilt-up construction. The 14-acre light industrial park will eventually have four buildings ranging from 16,000 square feet to 100,000 square feet.

Ben Campbell, development manager for Panattoni in Las Vegas, said the project is progressing nicely and he expects final completion in about 60 days..

Contact reporter Hubble Smith at hsmith@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0491.