Best Of 2006 - McGraw Hill Construction

Best of 2006 Architect of the Year
As reported in the October issue of
California Construction, Gensler won
the top spot in the annual Top
Architecture Firm rankings, earning
$435 million in 2005.
Andrew Cohen,
FAIA, executive
director, said he
expects the firm to
do even better in
2006 based on an
impressive lineup
of high-profile
projects, includ-
Andrew Cohen
ing the Hotel &
Residences at L.A. Live!, a component
of the larger $1 billion, six-block, mixeduse
entertainment development in
Watsonville-based Granite Construction
was once again atop the annual rankings
of the largest general contractors in
California, as reported in the April 2006
edition of California
Construction
Magazine, bringing
with it the designation
of the General
Contractor of the
Year.
The firm finished
2005 with
William Dorey total revenue of
$2.641 billion.
Despite California's budget problems in
the last year, which led to a temporary
postponement of many highway improve-
downtown Los Angeles. The project
includes a 60-story hotel with an 876room
Marriott Marquis on the bottom
floors, a 124-room Ritz-Carlton boutique
hotel above, and 216 residential condominiums
developed by KB Urban at the
very top.
Other Gensler projects boosting the
bottom line include 2000 Avenue of the
Stars, a new 750,000-sq.-ft. office building
just completed on the site where the
ABC Entertainment Center used to sit, at
the corner of Avenue of the Stars and
Constellation in Century City; and the
Port of Long Beach’s new administration
building, a 250,000-sq.-ft. office building
that will bring together administrative
and maintenance personnel and is
Best of 2006 General Contractor of the Year
ment projects in the state, Granite still
stayed in the fast lane.
“Thanks to mild weather conditions in
the West, many of our branches were able
to work late into the season and capitalize
on what I would characterize as one of the
healthiest transportation markets in many
years,” said William G. Dorey, president
and CEO of Granite. Besides California,
Granite has highway projects either just
completed or under way in 20 other
states.
Dorey said one of the keys to Granite’s
success is treating its employees right.
“What you hear, and this is relevant to the
fact that for three years running we’ve
been included in Fortune Magazine’s Top
100 Companies to work for, is that we
37 California Construction 12/2006
Gensler
seeking a LEED Gold certification.
Cohen said the firm’s success is its
diverse practices coupled with an expansion
on a global scale. “When U.S. firms
want to develop internationally, they
know about us,” he said.
Gensler has six offices in California,
including Los Angeles, San Francisco,
Newport Beach, San Ramon, San Diego
and San Jose. The firm employs 621 people
in the state.
Next year, Gensler’s business will be
“off the charts, our best year ever,” said
Cohen. “All our offices are extremely
busy and will continue due to all the
backlogged projects whose designs are
now being completed.”