56th Street Reconstruction CMAR Project Wins Build Arizona Award

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Members of the project team received the award at the recent 2016 Build Arizona Awards Dinner and Auction.

We are excited and honored to receive the Arizona Chapter Associated General Contractors (AZAGC) Build Arizona Award for our 56th Street Reconstruction CMAR project. The project won in the Public - Reconstruction (Metro) - Municipal Utilities - Projects Less Than $10 Million category. It was a pleasure working with the Town of Paradise Valley (Owner) and the CK Group (Designer) on this "Visually Significant Corridor”. Members of the project team received the award at the 2016 Build Arizona Awards Dinner and Auction at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix on April 8, 2016. Achen-Gardner Construction was a Bronze Sponsor of the event which had a sports team theme.
Visit the 56th Street Reconstruction Project Page for more project information and photos.

Sky Kids Take Flight In Scottsdale

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Achen-Gardner is proud to have been a sponsor and volunteer at the Sky Kids Fly Day Event For Special Kids held at Scottsdale Municipal Airport on Nov. 7.

The Sky Kids event gave more than 100 children with special needs an opportunity to fly in a general aviation aircraft with an expert pilot along with a parent or friend to experience the wonders and enjoyment of flight. It was a fun day on the ground too, with face painting, a BBQ lunch, Star Wars characters, yo-yo champions, helper dogs, clowns, aircraft displays, and much more. This is the second time a fall Sky Kids Fly Day Event has been hosted at the Scottsdale Municipal Airport in addition to the annual spring event at Phoenix-Goodyear Airport. Thank you to all of the volunteers and sponsors who made this year's Scottsdale Fly Day Event possible.

    Event Statistics
  • Pilots: 30
  • Volunteers: More than 200
  • Sky Kids flown: 114
  • Total flights at the event: 117
  • Family/friends flown: 182
  • Volunteers flown: 24
  • Total persons flown: 320
  • Hamburgers consumed: 390
  • Hotdogs consumed: 280
  • Cookies consumed: 800
  • Number of smiles: Too many to count

Visit the Sky Kids Facebook page for more photos of the November 7th event.

For more information visit the Sky Kids website at: skykidsaz.org

Mark your calendar, the next Sky Kids Fly Day Event will be at the Lux Air Jet Center at the Phoenix-Goodyear Airport on April 9, 2016.

Achen-Gardner Among Chandler's Top 100 Companies

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Achen-Gardner Construction is honored to be one of the City of Chandler's Top 100 Companies in 2015.

The Chandler Chamber of Commerce has recognized the top 100 distinguished stakeholder businesses in Chandler and Achen-Gardner was ranked #64 on the list. The Chandler Chamber ranks the companies based on physical presence in Chandler and the number of paid full time employees in Chandler. Achen-Gardner attended the Chandler 100 Ceremony on October 27, 2015 at the Chandler Center for the Arts and recieved an official certificate and a unique metal award created by TechShop Chandler.

56th Street Festival

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Join the Town of Paradise Valley and Achen-Gardner Construction on September 26th as we celebrate the newly improved 56th Street.

56th Street is now a new “iconic” street in Paradise Valley - beautifully connecting The Sanctuary Resort to El Chorro Restaurant with The Village at Mountain Shadows and the new Mountain Shadows resort. On Saturday morning (from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m.) September 26th between McDonald Drive and Lincoln Drive, 56th Street will be shut down so you can walk, bike, roller blade, saunter, run, drink, eat, enjoy and look at the stunning result.

PARK at El Chorro and enjoy complimentary sticky buns, coffee & juice too.

SEE spectacular views of Camelback Mountain, but no cars on 56th Street, except stationary McLarens that is.

LEARN about the new resort planned at Mountain Shadows by the people who have already brought us the Sanctuary Resort and Valley Ho.

BIKE Grab one at the Village at Mountain Shadows or bring your own. Learn about Cullum Homes’ spectacular new luxury community that will be home to new residents.

ENJOY steel drums, a McLaren Scottsdale car display, Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show horses and riders, fire trucks and refreshments all along 56th Street.

LISTEN to Mayor Michael Collins, Vice Mayor Dembow & other distinguished guests dedicate the spectacular street at 8 am. RELAX for breakfast or coffee at The Sanctuary Resort.

56th Street Project Featured in Arizona Builder's Exchange

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The following article about Achen-Gardner Construction's 56th Street Improvements CMAR project for the Town of Paradise Valley was featured in the August 7th issue of Arizona Builder's Exchange.

PV Roadway gets 'Iconic' Makeover

By Roland Murphy for Arizona Builder’s Exchange

When renovating a roadway in one of the Valley’s most high-dollar and aesthetically-focused areas, the actual laying of asphalt is arguably the simplest component of the process. Success and lasting value lie in detailed planning and active communication among all stakeholders at every step.

In Paradise Valley, the challenge was to remake 56th Street between McDonald and Lincoln drives from worn down residential side street into a highly functional but safe connector between the two endpoints.

The Town of Paradise Valley used the project as the impetus to create new “Iconic Visually Significant Corridor” guidelines to serve as the groundwork for future roadway development in the area.

Under a CMAR delivery method, the town brought in GC Achen-Gardner Construction and designer The CK Group to create the enhanced road according to its standards of providing a safe route of travel while accentuating the visual appeal and multiuse opportunities the project presented. The total construction value of the project was $2.4M.

The surrounding area gives testimony to both the potential and the challenges of new-meets-traditional in the area. Camelback Mountain lies to the south, Mummy Mountain to the north. On the west is the long-awaited and soon-to-be-renovated Mountain Shadows Golf Resort, as well as a new luxury home community lies east (AZBEX, May 12).

Key concerns under the guidelines included accommodating the modern trend of ensuring convenient pedestrian and cycling access to maximize usability options and minimize impact. Add to this the need to maintain the area’s scenic vistas and southwestern visual appeal with the general needs of any street project, such as traffic management, safety, security, privacy and ease of maintenance, and the list of targets to be hit simultaneously becomes impressive.

Renovation and construction for the now functionally completed project were planned in three phases. Before and during each phase, Achen-Gardner Construction and the Town of Paradise Valley regularly communicated with residents, businesses and other stakeholders to identify and alleviate concerns. Team members visited the site at least once a week, providing input on issues and approving adjustments as needed.

As a result of clearly identifying goals, empowering the contractor and design teams, communicating with stakeholders and closely monitoring developments along each phase, the corridor is now in place and contributing to the area’s overall appeal and accessibility.


Project Owner: Town of Paradise Valley

CMAR/General Contractor: Achen-Gardner Construction, LLC

Designer: The CK Group, Inc.

Major Subconsultants: EPG (Landscape Architect), Service Engineering Design Consultants (El Chorro Wall), National Sign Plazas, Inc. (Wayfinding Signage)

Major Subcontractors: MakPro Services (Public Outreach), B&F Contracting, Inc. (Electrical), ISS Grounds Control, Inc. (Landscaping), RGG United Contractors, Inc. (El Chorro Wall), Magnum Companies (Custom Metal Elements), Integrated Masonry (Stone Features), Creative Metals (Gates), European Pavers (Pavers), SmithCraft Custom Signs & Graphics (Wayfinding Signage)

Achen-Gardner Construction Ranks Among the Top Southwest Contractors

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Engineering News-Record (ENR) Magazine recently revealed its Top Contractor Rankings.

Achen-Gardner Construction, LLC was ranked #46 on the list of Southwest Top Contractors in the 2015 issue of the ENR (Southwest Region) Magazine.  A further breakdown of the rankings shows Achen-Gardner's standing within particular types of work: Transportation #33, Water Supply #33, Sewer/Solid Waste #34.

See the full list of Southwest Top Contractors