Both the major Pittsburgh hospital systems have signaled an increase in spending in 2017 and the push has really begun throughout the market. Proposals are due Friday for CM services on the $111 million UPMC Hamot patient tower. RFP’s went to PJ Dick/E. E. Austin, Mascaro, Massaro/Gilbane, Turner and Whiting/Turner. RFP’s for the $75 million St. Clair Hospital project are due out by next week and RFP’s for the new 280,000 square foot, $180 million UPMC South Hills hospital at South Fayette’s Newbury Market should follow right behind. You can read more about the hospital construction market in the March/April BreakingGround digital edition.

In other project news, BRIDGES & Co. was awarded the $4.5 million expansion of Prominent Fluid Controls Building 2. Massaro Corp. was selected for a $5 million renovation project by UPMC at the Kaufman Medical Building in Oakland. Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is taking proposals from Facility Support Services, PJ Dick, Jendoco and Mosites for renovations to its library, a project in the $10-12 million range. Corcoran Jennison is taking bids April 15 for the 2nd phase of the Oak Hill neighborhood, the 140-unit Brackenridge Apartments. The contractors bidding the $24 million phase are Arcon Construction, Fairchance, Graziano, Jendoco, Mistick and PJ Dick/Waller.

The Department of Labor released its estimates of metropolitan job growth in February and Pittsburgh came in below the benchmark average of two percent, with 10,000 more jobs than in February 2016. That’s a 0.9 percent bump; not great but four times the average annual gain for 2014-2016. The forecast is that the rejuvenation of the gas business will be a booster – rather than a drag – for the tech and finance job growth in Pittsburgh this year.