Facilities Management Advisor’s “Under Construction” series highlights some of the latest, most interesting facility project announcements every month.
World Trade Center Office Tower
Financial services giant American Express has revealed plans to build a new state-of-the-art global headquarters at 2 World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan—marking the final office tower to be built at the World Trade Center campus almost 25 years after the site was destroyed in the 9/11 attacks. American Express, which will be the sole owner and occupant of the new skyscraper, said it will custom-design the building to foster innovation, collaboration, and well-being for employees. The announcement comes as major financial firms, including JPMorgan, have doubled down on post-pandemic efforts to bring workers back to the office.
Organization: American Express
Location: New York City
Type of project: New build
Size: ~2 million square feet
Estimated cost: N/A
Design-build team: Silverstein Properties and Foster + Partners
Status: Announced Feb. 25
Expected completion: 2031
Interesting tidbit: Spanning nearly 2 million square feet across 55 floors, the new American Express building will have capacity to host up to 10,000 employees across flexible and modern workspaces. Expected for completion in 2031, it will replace the company’s current New York City headquarters, which opened in 1986. Designed with advanced smart building technology and fully electric, energy-efficient systems, the project will also pursue Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.
Quote: Stephen J. Squeri, chairman and CEO of American Express, said, “This is an investment in our company’s future, our colleagues, and the Lower Manhattan community, reaffirming our deep commitment to the neighborhood we’ve called home for nearly two centuries.”
More details are available here.
Fresh Bloom at Rose Bowl
The Rose Bowl Stadium, an iconic and historic venue for college football and other major events, has kicked off the $30 million South End Zone Field Club project to improve the fan experience. Featuring nearly 1,000 field-level seats, enhanced hospitality spaces, and an outdoor patio, the modernization project represents the first phase of the Lasting Legacy Capital Campaign, which will include more stadium upgrades in the coming years.
Organization: Rose Bowl Stadium
Location: Pasadena, Calif.
Type of project: Renovation
Size: N/A
Estimated cost: $30 million
Status: Ground broken Jan. 15
Expected completion: By start of 2026 college football season
Interesting tidbit: The Rose Bowl Stadium is a National Historic Landmark built in 1922. The venue is known globally for hosting the annual Rose Bowl Game, UCLA Football, international and Premier League soccer matches, and one of the world’s largest Flea Markets. It has also hosted the 1932 Olympic Track Cycling event, five NFL Super Bowl Games, the 1984 Olympic Soccer matches, the 1994 Men’s World Cup, the 1999 Women’s World Cup, four BCS National College Football Championship Games, and the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal and Semifinal Game. In 2028, the iconic venue will host the Olympic Games for a third time.
Quote: Stadium CEO Jens Weiden said, “The Rose Bowl Stadium continues to honor its past by investing in its future. This project ensures that the most important moments in sports and entertainment will be staged in a setting that reflects both tradition and progress.”
More details are available here.
Future-Ready Hospital Campus
Baptist Health, Turner Construction, and community leaders broke ground on Baptist Health Sunrise Hospital, a half-billion-dollar project to expand healthcare access for residents of western Broward County, Fla. Being built on a 26-acre parcel of land, the seven-story, 340,000-square-foot hospital will feature a 30-bed emergency department, 100 inpatient beds, and four surgical suites, with room for expansion. The facility will incorporate cutting-edge tech like robotics and AI, as well as be designed to withstand Florida hurricanes. The campus will also include a 25,000-square-foot medical office building and parking garage.
Organization: Baptist Health
Location: Sunrise, Fla.
Type of project: New build
Size: 26-acre campus
Estimated cost: +$500 million
Build team: Turner Construction
Status: Ground broken Jan. 28
Expected completion: 2029
Interesting tidbit: Notably, the hospital campus will include a central energy plant, designed to provide uninterrupted power during outages or extreme weather events such as hurricanes. Other resilient features include site elevation that exceeds requirements, water storage, and reinforced structural elements. According to Baptist Health, the hospital is also slated to be the first all-electric medical facility in Florida.
Quote: Bo Boulenger, president and CEO of Baptist Health, said, “This is more than just a hospital; it’s a commitment to the health, sustainability, and future of Sunrise and the surrounding areas.”
More details are available here.
Automated Distribution Center
Ahold Delhaize USA, parent company of major grocery retailers like Food Lion and Stop & Shop, is investing more than $860 million to boost its supply chain by building a high-tech distribution center in Burlington, N.C. The new facility will add over 1 million square feet of fresh and frozen distribution capacity. As the largest site in the company’s network, the facility is expected to serve hundreds of Food Lion stores in the region, with 135 million cases processed annually.
Organization: Ahold Delhaize USA
Location: Burlington, N.C.
Type of project: New build
Size: +1 million square feet
Estimated cost: $860 million
Build team: Tippmann Group
Status: Ground broken Feb. 16
Expected completion: 2029
Interesting tidbit: The state-of-the-art distribution center will incorporate advanced automation and material handling systems designed to improve efficiency, accuracy, and associate safety. The Burlington site will be the company’s fourth distribution center in North Carolina. Together, these sites help support one of the largest grocery supply chain networks on the East Coast, operating more than 8,000 transportation assets and logging more than 125 million miles annually.
Quote: JJ Fleeman, CEO of Ahold Delhaize USA, said, “This groundbreaking marks another exciting step forward in strengthening our supply chain network and ensuring we can serve our customers with the freshest products every day.”
More details are available here.
Honorable Mentions
- $12B Amazon Data Centers
- Mets Minor League Complex
- School District’s Portable Classroom Replacement
- $1.7 Billion Public Health Lab
- Arizona Cardinals Practice Facility
Do you have a major project announcement you’d like considered for the “Under Construction” series? Please contact Editor Joe Bebon at JBebon@BLR.com.