August 2009 Cover Story

 

TxDOT Executive Director, Amadeo Saenz, Jr. Talks About the Future of Construction in Texas

 

 

HCA welcomed for the first time as speaker, Mr. Amadeo Saenz, Jr., Executive Director for the Texas Department of Transportation.  Mr. Saenz thanked HCA for the opportunity to address the group and recognized his local district director, Delvin Dennis for the outstanding job that he has done in taking over the Houston district.

 

Mr. Saenz began his presentation with a discussion on the Grand Parkway stating that TxDOT has been working very closely with the Harris County Toll Road Authority (HCTRA) on the development of the Grand Parkway.  One of the things that TxDOT wants to accomplish is to see the Grand Parkway constructed as one project.  This is important to TxDOT because, in theory with it passing through seven different counties, you could see seven different construction projects and seven different types of development.  Two years TxDOT ago worked through the legislature to create SB792.  This bill set up a mechanism to develop the Grand Parkway as one project where each completed section would help to develop the remaining sections.  HCTRA has the right of first refusal and they have been working with the other six counties on this project, however come September, if the County Judges decide not to do it, then TxDOT will already has a plan in place.  According to Mr. Saenz, if TxDOT builds the Grand Parkway it would be constructed in a similar format to that proposed by HCTRA.  Mr. Saenz stressed to the contractors in the audience that there will be an open procurement on this project and that they want as many contractors as possible to come forward to bid.

 

Mr. Saenz next asked how many contractors in the audience were certified as a DBE, SBE, WBE or certified to bid on TxDOT contracts?  The response from the audience was light to which Mr. Saenz stated that if you wish to work for TxDOT, and fall under one of those categories, TxDOT has a mechanism for you to get certified.  Being certified is the only way that you can work on TxDOT projects either as a prime or a sub.    To bid on any TxDOT project you must be certified and TxDOT is actively looking to increase its number of certified contractors at all levels.

 

Mr. Saenz moved on to cover a few things that came out of the last legislative session.  Amadeo stated that the legislature was considering a couple of things that were important to his department.  One was the setting of the state budget and of course TxDOT’s portion of that money and also the conclusion of the sunset legislation for TxDOT.  Mr. Saenz said that he felt certain that the Department of Transportation performed an important task and would be continued.  Unfortunately, according to Mr. Saenz, any bill that was behind the voter I.D. bill didn’t go anywhere.  Mr. Saenz stated that they had worked with both houses and come out with a good bill that addressed issues concerning transportation, department operations and the structure of the department as a whole.  However the voter I.D. bill was never resolved and the session ended without the TxDOT sunset bill being approved, therefore the department went into the wind down process to close the department.  Luckily the governor called a special session in which the legislature passed two bills; one gave TxDOT an extension of two years, basically keeping TxDOT under the sunset review for an additional two years. The second bill authorized TxDOT to issue $2 billion worth of general obligation bonds that had been previously approved by the voters.  This will allow TxDOT to have one billion dollars in infrastructure bank and $2 billion for infrastructure projects.  This money will not solve Texas’ transportation problems, according to Mr. Saenz, when you look at the transportation needs of the state, that money is about one year’s worth of work that you can advance.  The Chairman of the Department of Transportation put together a committee called the 2030 Committee whose purpose was to study the future transportation needs for the State of Texas.  To do this they needed to find out what it would take to maintain the roads and bridges that we currently have and also what is the investment that is needed to keep the State competitive with other states in the nation.  The committee determined that between now and the year 2030 the state needed approximately $313 billion to address the needs of the state.  Broken out, that comes out to $14 billion a year.  Texas spends between $3 and $4 billion per year on the highway program currently for construction and maintenance.  What that means is that right now TxDOT does not have the resources to cover the needs of the state.  Mr. Saenz stated that we need to start working together to determine where new funding sources can be found that can help us solve this problem.  Mr. Saenz stated that he has begun working on the legislators, trying to educate them on exactly what it takes to keep Texas moving and how much that will cost.  You don’t get everything you want in one session said Saenz, so we have started laying the groundwork for the future. 

 

Another issue that TxDOT was interested in addressing during the last legislative session was how much money was being taken from the state highway fund and used for other agencies like DPS, Health and Human Services and Medical Transportation.  Mr. Saenz stated that he was able to reduce that amount this year by $365 million.  There was a lot of movement in this last session to keep the transportation money for transportation.  Mr. Saenz says he thinks that push will continue into the next legislative session because the hole for meeting the transportation goal is getting deeper by the year.  Mr. Saenz stated that he is about $2 billion down this biennium as compared to the last session.  TxDOT is also working to get stimulus money to do a feasibility study for two high speed rail corridors in Texas.  One corridor runs along interstate 35 and the other runs from Houston toward Baton Rouge.  They are currently looking into ways to connect the two lines.

 

Federal issues.  Congress is working on a new re-authorization bill for the disbursement of the gas tax.  Congress has a draft bill out now that would increase the funding from the current $225 billion over six years to $500 billion over six years.  Unfortunately a closer examination of the bill shows that there is less money in that bill for highways than there is in the current bill.  Mr. Saenz stated that he does not think that this is the bill that will make it out of congress, however the current bill is ending soon and a replacement needs to be found.  President Obama is on record for extending the current bill an additional 18 months to give his administration time to get up to speed on the issue.

 

Mr. Saenz closed by noting that when gas prices rose last year to $4.00 per gallon we started seeing big changes in peoples habits.  Gas guzzlers were being replaces with fuel efficient vehicles, car pools increased and people who had never used public transportation before began using it.  The interesting thing according to Saenz is now that the gas prices have dropped we are not seeing a return of people to their private vehicles.  According to Mr. Saenz people have identified ways to save money and therefore there has been a corresponding drop in the motor fuels tax revenue brought in by the state.  According to Mr. Saenz, revenue is down about 2.5 % compared to historical data.  That equates out to about $50 to $60 million a year less.  According to Mr. Saenz, we need to find a replacement for the motor fuel tax as the revenue source for TxDOT and find something more reliable.  Across the country there are several new approaches to funding our highways.  One is a motor vehicle miles per gallon tax that is being looked at in Seattle.  This proposal would tax drivers based on the number of miles that they drive.  Mr. Saenz says that he believes we will see a change to something like a vehicle miles per gallon tax in the near future.

 

 

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August 2009 V.P. Report

 

 

HRT Comes to Town

 

We have all sat here for the last several years listening to Metro talk about how it was going to improve the city’s mass transit situation with the addition of five new light rail lines throughout the city.  Many of us became skeptical that it would ever happen, especially after hearing of how they planned on funding the program and seeing the ire generated by some of the neighborhoods the rail lines are to pass through.  However fate is a funny thing, and just when it seemed that all was lost, there were some key changes in Washington D.C. and then some more changes in D.C. and now Metro has actually begun to take the first steps in building the rail lines.  Funding hasn’t been officially, completely signed off on, but it is close enough and they have now begun to relocate the utility lines ahead of the actual construction.  In fact on July 17, 2009 HRT received a $121 million notice to proceed from Metro.  This should be wonderful news to a construction industry that has suffered greatly during this recession.  However Metro, to their own detriment, has done a terrible job of public relations, especially when it comes to the handling of the local construction market.  Rumors have flown freely about the rail line construction and Metro has done nothing to address any of the concerns.  A couple of the more recent rumors floating about are that the prime contractor planned to self-perform all of the work.  A variant of that was that the prime planned to hire only one local, minority owned subcontractor who was to do all of the 30% SBE work required by Metro.  The latest rumor was that Metro planned on creating 60,000 jobs in Houston by hiring away local construction crews to man the jobs being run by the out of state prime contractor. Throw in the recent bad press concerning their questionable committee meeting posting policy that has appeared twice in the Chronicle and the general non-responsiveness of the Board of Directors to public concerns, it is no wonder that Metro has a poor reputation at least amongst contractors.

 

Thankfully I think there may be a light at the end of the tunnel because now that the actual construction phase is about to begin, Houston Rapid Transit (HRT) is moving in and beginning to take over the reins of this massive construction project.  HRT is a joint venture made up of Parsons, Granite Construction, Kiewit Texas Construction, and Stacey & Witbeck, Inc.  Very recently HCA had a meeting with the Senior Procurement Manager for HRT, Ms. Barbara Leavitt to discuss local participation in this project.  Ms. Leavitt is laying the groundwork for Parsons and stated that she is actively looking for local contractors to partner with on this project.  She was directly asked questions about the self performance rumor and about Parsons hiring away local crews.  Her answer was surprising.  According to Ms. Leavitt, 100% of the utility line relocation work will be subcontracted out and approximately 70% of the primary line work will be subcontracted out.  Parsons recognizes that local companies can do the work cheaper and plans to utilize them as much as possible.  Ms. Leavitt also stated that Parsons will not be bringing in out of state subcontractors, they will be working with local talent wherever possible.  Good news for everyone in the civil construction market that’s for sure.  The Parsons contract is a $1.46 billion contract for four new light rail lines which will add 20 miles to the already existing 7 mile long downtown line.  There will be an additional $93 million spent on utility work as well.

 

HCA is working with Ms. Leavitt, and is in the process of scheduling meetings with representatives of Parsons and Granite Construction in the hopes of growing this relationship and supplying them with the companies that they need to complete the work. I will keep you all updated on any changes or new announcements.  By the time you read this you should have already received a copy of the Metro prequalification form and a list of upcoming projects for the rest of the year, if not call the office and I will have one sent over.

 

PAC Endorsements

 

The political arm of the Houston Contractors Association, HOUCONPAC has been meeting with candidates for all of the upcoming City of Houston elections over the last few weeks and at their last meeting made endorsements for those races.  Below is a list of the offices and the candidates that we endorsed for that office.  HCA supports and endorses these individuals and asks that you vote for them on November 3^rd.

 

Mayor                                      No decision at this time

Controller                                No decision at this time

At Large Position 1                 Steve Costello

At Large Position 2                 Sue Lovell

At Large Position 3                 Melissa Noriega

At Large Position 4                 C.O. Bradford

At Large Position 5                 Jolanda Jones

District A                                No decision at this time

District B                                Jarvis Johnson

District C                                Anne Clutterbuck

District D                                Wanda Adams

District E                                 Mike Sullivan

District F                                 Mike Laster

District G                                Oliver Pennington

District H                                Ed Gonzalez

District I                                  James Rodriguez

 

City of Sugar Land

At Large Position 2                 Jacquie Baly Chaumette

 

 

September Luncheon Change

 

Due to a scheduling conflict with the HESS Club the September 24^th HCA luncheon has been moved to a new location.  The luncheon will be held at the Houston City Club located in the Greenway Plaza area at One City Club Drive, just off of Edloe between US 59 and Richmond Avenue.  Our speaker that month will be Texas State Senator Dan Patrick so be sure to make the change in your calendar and come on out.

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For Immediate Release

August 13, 2009

 

 

For More Information Contact:                   

Jeffrey Nielsen

Houston Contractors Association

713-349-9434

 

HCA/HOUCONPAC ANNOUNCES ITS ENDORSEMENTS FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON 2009 NOVEMBER ELECTIONS

 

The Houston Contractors Association was formed in 1956 and is a local non-profit, trade association which provides services to approximately 400 member companies in the civil construction industry.

 

HCA is very active in City, County and State government relations and announces the following endorsements in the upcoming November 2009 City Of Houston elections:

 

Mayor                                                              No endorsement at this time

Controller                                                        No endorsement at this time

City Council At Large Position 1                     Steve Costello

City Council At Large Position 2                     Sue Lovell

City Council At Large Position 3                     Melissa Noriega

City Council At Large Position 4                     Clarence Bradford

City Council At Large Position 5                     Jolanda Jones

City Council District A                                    No endorsement at this time

City Council District B                                     Jarvis Johnson

City Council District C                                     Anne Clutterbuck

City Council District D                                    Wanda Adams

City Council District E                                     Michael Sullivan

City Council District F                                     Mike Laster

City Council District G                                    Oliver Pennington

City Council District H                                    Ed Gonzalez

City Council District I                                      James Rodriguez

 

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July 2009 Cover Story

 

Mayoral Candidate Gene Locke Speaks About His Plans for Houston

 

 

HCA was honored to have mayoral candidate Gene Locke as this month’s luncheon speaker.  Mr. Locke was the City Attorney under Mayor Bob Lanier and is considered by many to be the frontrunner in this campaign.  Mr. Locke opened his comments by saying that he is a family man with five kids, a member of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, and that it is his family and his faith that get him out of bed every morning.  He stated that the reason he is running for mayor is because he wants to give something back to the city.  Mr. Locke started off his presentation telling the audience a little about himself saying that he is a guy that loves this city.  He noted that he has never sought or held elective office before, except for a brief appointment on the Houston Community College Board.  Mr. Locke stated that he has worked in oil refineries and steel mills, run a small business, and worked in one of America’s largest law firms and it is that experience that has put him in the unique position that he is today, to understand Houston and the people of Houston.

 

Mr. Locke said that his is running for mayor to see that Houston continues to be the city of opportunity.  According to Mr. Locke, what the next mayor has to insure is that the City of Houston is and always will be a city of opportunity.  City leaders need to always ask what is it that we must do to remain a city of opportunity.  One of the things that that Mr. Locke believes that he brings to the table is his ability to take a vision and apply the appropriate leadership skills to pull people together in order to move from point A to point B.  Mr. Locke continued, saying that this ability is important in good times, however in bad times he feels that this is an essential quality, and the mayor needs to be able to bring people together for a common goal.

 

Mr. Locke stated that he has three main goals, public safety, business development and quality of life.  He stated that public safety needs to be a priority in this city.  To make Houston into the great, international city that it can be, it first has to be considered a safe city.  That means doing the kind of things to police Houston in a way that makes sense.  Mr. Locke stated that in every community across Houston people are concerned about crime.  We need to get the best officers, equip them with the best technology and insist that our law enforcement officers work in conjunction with other law enforcement agencies to police this city.  Mr. Locke stated that this example is to the core of his basic political theme of how can we get the various political bodies to work together to address a common problem.  Mr. Locke said that neither the city nor Harris County has the resources any longer to go it alone, that we have reached our capacity to tax people and that we need to do more with less.  Cooperative joint projects, according to Mr. Locke, is one way to achieve that goal.

 

Business development, business opportunity and business prosperity is what drives a city.  We need to make sure that Houston is the marketplace of business, said Locke.  He stated that he will be a pro-growth and pro-business mayor if elected.  Mr. Locke went on saying that he wants to see a city where all size companies can do well and where start-up companies can have an opportunity to flourish.  According to Locke, to make Houston that way the city has to be seen as open, fair and non-restrictive to business.  Government has the role of protecting health and safety.  The economy begins and ends in a free market environment and it is business that creates the money and the jobs.  We need to have health and safety regulations, but we always need to ask are we being open or restrictive to business.  Locke also stated that the city needs to be strong on developing small business.  Mr. Locke said that he has a goal that he will announce at his first State of the City address, that within five years the City of Houston will be in the top five of all American cities in terms of small business productivity.  We need to attract business into the city, both national and international companies; at the same time Locke stated that we need to nurture small, home-grown companies as well.  Setting goals for small business development and letting it be known that this administration will set the city on a course that encourages small business development is important in his administration.  Also the City needs to look at how it interacts with small businesses said Locke.  He stated that permitting, licensing and restrictions should be done for health and safety, the process should not be cumbersome and above all it should be user friendly.  Bill White started the streamlining process for the permitting department and Mr. Locke promises to pick up where he left off creating one stop permitting.

 

On the issue of quality of life, Mr. Locke stated that we need great transportation systems and great neighborhoods, but we also need to develop a new look at our infrastructure in this City.  Mr. Locke said that we need to find a way to recognize that there is a built environment and the natural environment both within the city, and we need to find a way to make the two work together.  The City also has a great challenge before it with its underground utilities, wastewater system, streets and drainage.  There is a lot to do to improve your quality of life said Locke.  He also mentioned that he would spend time discussing education.  We need to have a trained, skilled work force in this city and I will try to encourage the best educational advancement while creating job training programs.

 

When questioned about the lack of transparency in the Metro bidding process, Mr. Locke stated that when elected he would appoint a board that would be interested in the things he is interested in, and Metro’s handling of the Metro Solutions project would be one of the first items they review.  Mr. Locke stated that every government body that has the authority to do design build needs to set up, as part of their criteria, a weighted score that addresses a bidder’s local impact on the economy of Houston.  What that means is how many local companies are you using and what is that impact on the economy said Locke. That is the legal way to have local contractors work on these types of jobs.  He stated that it would be horrible if Metro lets that happen and as Mayor he will make sure that it doesn’t happen.  Mr. Locke then moved on saying that one of his opponent’s has rolled out a plan called “Houston First” that, according to Locke sounds like a wonderful thing and takes care of our local companies, however the way the program is rolled out it is illegal.  There is no state law that would allow you to throw out an existing bid and replace it with a higher, local bid.  

 

In closing, Mr. Locke stated that he understands how tough it will be to make these types of changes at City Hall, but says that his time as city attorney has prepared him for these challenges.  He stated that he clearly understands that there will be a downturn in the economy, but believes that government has a special role to play, to try to jump start growth and development at every level.  He pledged that when elected, he will create a plan to get the resources necessary to do the best we can in difficult times.  As an example Mr. Locke said that we need to have a coordinated effort to get every Federal dollar that we are eligible for, and then some.  As mayor, Mr. Locke stated that he would work on a Houston agenda for our congressional delegation, working with both Republicans and Democrats in an effort to do what is best for the city and get more federal dollars into projects in Houston.  He also said that he would work with Harris County and other agencies to do joint public projects where funds can be combined to provide a service to the community.  He will look at where the city spends it dollars for their appropriateness in re-building the city.  He also said that even in a bad economy sometimes you need to look at how can we let jobs out.  He will look at the possibility of issuing bonds or other notes that could fund needed projects in the city and help jump start business.  He said that things will be difficult, but that he is up for the task and is willing and ready to take this on.

 

 

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OSHA Upate

I guess it’s to be expected that with a new administration in the White House that there would be some changes in policy, and guess what, one of those changes is coming our way. The new U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis stated that beginning in July, OSHA will increase the number of inspectors in Texas for a concentrated effort to prevent injuries and fatalities at construction sites. Mrs. Solis’ statement was made at a recent conference of American Society of Safety Engineers in San Antonio. Mrs. Solis went on stating that when these inspectors observe unsafe scaffolds, fall risks, trenches or other hazards they are empowered to launch an immediate investigation. "As I have said since my first day on the job, the U.S. Department of Labor is back in the enforcement business." said Solis.

More workers die in Texas than in any other state. In 2008 there were 67 construction industry fatalities. In 2009 that number has already reached 33 and the rate of Hispanic fatalities in the state increased 125 percent since 1992. Between 2007 and 2008 OSHA conducted more than 3000 inspections in southeastern states and the agency issued a total of 4,390 violations.  Now might be a good time to review the safety procedures with your employees before these new, and presumably gung-ho inspectors hit the streets.

Mayoral Race Update

As I reported in last month’s bulletin, State Representative Sylvester Turner has been mulling over the possibility of mounting another run for mayor of Houston.  Representative Turner has run twice before, once in 1991 where he lost in a bitter runoff to Bob Lanier and then again in 2003 where he finished third behind Orlando Sanchez and Bill White. 

Representative Turner ended the speculation earlier this month with the release of the following statement;  After careful consideration and consultation with a number of individuals, I have decided I will not run for mayor of the City of Houston in 2009.  Although I believe the race is eminently winnable, a late entry into the campaign would have required that I drop every other project in which I am involved—community endeavors such as the Houston Astros MLB Urban Youth Baseball Academy in Acres Homes and continuing my work in the Texas Legislature, to which I am deeply committed and thoroughly enjoy.   I thank everyone who took the time to discuss this race with me and the many, many supporters who urged me to run.  I have much more to accomplish in my life and I will continue to work hard for the citizens of my district, my city and my state.

If Turner had decided to join the mayor’s race he would have played the spoiler for Gene Locke, splitting off votes from the African-American community, decreasing his base and thereby opening a door for both Annise Parker and Peter Brown.  However with this announcement Mr. Locke can breathe a big sigh of relief and continue on with his game plan to win the mayor’s seat.

Metro Light Rail Update

Frank Wilson, President and C.E.O. for Metro made a rare public appearance recently before the Transportation, Infrastructure and Aviation Committee at City Hall. This committee, chaired by Council Member Sue Lovell is tasked with reviewing all issues relating to ground transportation and general mobility including freight and passenger rail.  It also oversees all issues regarding public utilities, rights of way and the airport.  At the meeting Metro gave a generalized report on how they foresee the construction proceeding and highlights of the project.  Basically here is what was said; this is a $1.46 billion project that will go out in pieces as the financing comes available.  The prime contractor, Parsons Transportation Group will be responsible for designing, building, operating and maintaining the four new light-rail lines: North Line, East End Line, Southeast Line and the Uptown Line.  There will be cash incentives awarded for safety, community relations, adherence to schedule and quality of work.  The SBE goal on the contract is 35%.  Parsons will self perform all work except where price is disputed in which case Metro can then go out to the local market.  Mr. Wilson also said that the project would create 60,000 jobs in the Houston area, however when pressed by Council Members about hiring local companies he did go back to the “we will be creating 60,000 jobs” line which tells me he is going to do his darnedest to let Parsons self perform as much as possible. Also it sounds like part of those 60,000 jobs will be local construction crews hired by Parson’s to perform the work.  HCA is working to make sure local contractors are included as much as possible in this contract.

HCA Spring Golf Tournament

I would like to personally thank everyone who came out and participated in the HCA Spring Golf Tournament at Black Horse County Club.  I would especially like to thank all of our sponsors, raffle prize contributors, Sign & Supply for donating the signs, and Bay Oil for contributing a salt water fishing trip as a raffle prize. Thank you also goes out to the members of the HCA Golf Committee and especially its chairman, Richard Greer for pulling the event together and to our volunteers, thank you all for making this a fantastic event.

HCA Day at Minute Maid Park

With the Houston Astros 2009 baseball season well underway it is also time to start looking forward the annual HCA Day at Minute Maid Park.  This year the event will be held on Saturday, August 8th with a 6:05p.m start time and the Astros will be facing the Milwaukee Brewers.  Tickets are available now so get your count ready and order early.  Sponsors are still needed for this event as well.

 

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