KVC Constructors Commences Construction on Frank Gehry-Designed Miami Beach Parking Facility

Pennsylvania Avenue Garage to Serve Lincoln Road, Convention Center, Fillmore at Jackie Gleason Theater and New World Symphony Patrons

MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Nov. 9, 2009 -- Construction is now underway on the new Miami Beach parking facility designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry and located adjacent to the New World Symphony's new campus in the heart of Miami Beach.

KVC Constructors, a Miami-based general contracting, construction management and design/build firm, obtained permits and broke ground on the $12.9 million mixed-use facility in early September. Foundation construction is almost complete and erection of the superstructure began on November 4. The anticipated completion date for the Pennsylvania Avenue Garage is May 2010.

The six-story facility, owned and operated by the City of Miami Beach, comprises approximately 550 parking spaces as well as 7,400 square feet of ground-level retail space. A pedestrian bridge at the third level connects the garage to the symphony hall.

"The City looks forward to the convenience this parking facility will provide for its residents and visitors in what will be an architecturally unique facility," said City Manager Jorge M. Gonzalez.

The garage's design concept, created by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry, complements that of the adjacent campus, also designed by Gehry. The garage design employs precast concrete panels that are sheathed in stainless-steel mesh. Decorative LED lighting will illuminate the mesh at night, coordinated with similar LED lighting on the campus structure.

The garage will feature a covered walkway connecting it to the New World Symphony's campus. In addition, the garage is ideally situated to accommodate patrons of the nearby Miami Beach Convention Center, The Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater, and the Lincoln Road pedestrian mall. KVC Constructors, Inc. is the design/build contractor for the garage. The design team is led by Hershell Gill Consulting Engineers, Inc. McLeod Architectural Group, P.A., is the architect. Civil design services are provided by Schwebke Shiskin & Associates, Inc. Mechanical, electrical and plumbing design is by HNGS Engineers Inc.; SimplexGrinnell is the fire protection designer. Landscape design is by Rosenberg Gardner Design. Precast concrete panels are fabricated locally by Coreslab Structures (Miami) Inc. The stainless-steel mesh is manufactured by GKD-USA.

Facchina-McGaughan, LLC is the Construction Manager at Risk for the New World Symphony Campus Expansion.

NEWS RELEASE from KVC Constructors
Contact: Tim Dodson, tel. 305-756-0735 / tim@timdodson.com

NOTE TO EDITOR: A high-resolution rendering of the Pennsylvania Avenue Garage is available for download at http://bit.ly/4DOy0I .