Philadelphia Construction Law Blog

Work on the Allentown Hockey Arena, the future home of the Phantoms of the American Hockey League and the anchor to larger development plans in Allentown, has broken another log jam. The Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone Development Authority has closed on funding for completion of the arena complex construction.

Philly.com reports that a deal has finally been struck between Post Brothers and the Philadelphia trade unions in relation to the Goldtex construction project. Congressman Bob Brady brought the two sides together at the Sheet Metal Workers union hall this week and brokered at least a temporary peace.

The Construction Research and Policy Center recently reported that falls on construction sites remain an issue. They are still the single leading cause of construction site fatalities, causing 1/3 of all deaths. The annual fall fatality rate is 3 per 100,000 among construction workers, a number six times that of deaths caused by texting while driving accidents.

McGraw Hill has released an update on its 2012 economic forecast for the construction industry. Although there seems to be a slight rebound on residential construction starts, the overall numbers have not improved. Rather, they have flattened out and remain low

Here are a few recent developments in in the green building industry worth noting:

This being an election year, immigration policy is being debated again in national politics. It is an especially hot topic given the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on Arizona’s immigration law and President Obama’s announcement that he will no longer prosecute illegal immigrants in certain demographics. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has now become part of the debate.