Shopping Center Redevelopment Overcomes Issues to Finish On-Time
Brook Highland Plaza, an open-air shopping center in a fast growing section of Birmingham, Ala., needed a make over. The shopping center’s owner, Developers Diversified Realty (DDR), hired Fulcrum Construction to renovate several shop spaces, build a shell for a new tenant and handle the prep work for a 30,000 square foot foundation.
Before construction could begin, however, unexpected issues started to surface.
“Nobody likes a project with a lot of change orders but it happens,” said Mike Birt, the project manager overseeing the work for DDR. “The Fulcrum staff went out their way to keep me informed, help me document the necessary changes and make sure my tenants were happy.”
As part of the redevelopment, DDR planned to put the new building and foundation in an area where an old movie theater – since demolished – had been. Engineers discovered, however, that the theater had been built on bad dirt. It was full of organic material that, as it decomposed, would cause any new buildings to settle significantly. Replacing the unsuitable soil with 8,000 yards of clean fill was the only solution.
The new building – a 10,000 square foot shell – also needed changes. The tenant, a national health and beauty retailer, had required modifications to the HVAC, plumbing and exterior landscaping to bring the building into line with the store prototype.
“Even with the change orders, they still met all the deadlines,” Birt said. “They did the work well and treated me fairly throughout the process. It’s hard to ask for more than that.”