The AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT) will finance a Cleveland-area affordable housing project for senior citizens. HIT will provide approximately $6.6 million of the $12.6 million needed for the substantial rehabilitation of the Pinzone Towers Apartments project, located in Rocky River, a suburb west of Cleveland.
Read MoreUnited Association apprentices from across Ohio once again had the ability to show off their skillset and wage a friendly competition to identify the state’s top apprentices in the union pipe trades.
From April 18 to 22, the Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 94 Training Center in Canton welcomed 33 apprentices from across the state to demonstrate their training as either a pipefitter, plumber, sprinkler fitter, welder or HVAC service technician.
Affiliated members of the Cleveland Building Trades were on-hand April 18 for a groundbreaking ceremony to construct an all-union Habitat for Humanity house in Cleveland, funded in part by a donation from the Cleveland Building Trades Foundation. The $25,000 donation by the CBTF marks a significant investment in not only the project, but also the Greater Buckeye neighborhood, where the house will be built.
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A long-awaited project in downtown Cleveland will begin soon thanks to a major tax credit award from the State of Ohio, creating more work for area union trades.
On March 2, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority and the Ohio Department of Development awarded the Millennia Companies a $40 million Transformational Mixed-Use Development (TMUD) tax credit award for the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of The Centennial. Located at 925 Euclid Ave., the building was formerly known as the Huntington Building and has been mostly vacant for over a decade.
Union construction workers should expect to remain busy in most parts of Ohio this year. According to multiple leaders from various jurisdictions, the 2022 forecast looks promising, even with expected supply chain issues creating problems. In 2021, a number of projects across the state slowed down due to a lack of materials. Items such as steel, electrical parts, roofing material, brick, drywall, paint and other items have been in short supply. As a result, some projects such as the Cleveland Cliffs steel mill renovation work in Cleveland were pushed back.
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A partnership between the City of Cleveland, Cleveland Clinic, Meijer, Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation and Fairmount Properties will create 300 jobs for affiliated members of the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council. A Dec. 14 groundbreaking ceremonially started the project to build a small grocery store and apartment complex in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood. Located on the corner of East 105th Street and Cedar Avenue, Fairfax Market is part of the overall $500 million Cleveland Innovation District project.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced plans to permanently rescind previous efforts to create Industry Recognized Apprenticeship Programs (IRAPs) from all industries.
Introduced during the Trump administration, IRAPs were widely criticized by the labor community due to their lack of oversight. These “self-monitored” apprenticeship programs rely on employers or affiliated partners to train new workers without any government regulation or oversight.
Many feared these programs could lead to a permanent class of apprentices.
Laborers’ Local 310 officers welcomed Labor Secretary Marty Walsh to the Local 310 Union Hall. From left to right: Field Representative Sean Campbell, Business Manager Terry Joyce, Secretary of Labor Walsh, Secretary-Treasurer Thomas Byrne and Field Representative/President John Soeder.
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Officials from the Cleveland Clinic held a virtual groundbreaking ceremony on Sept. 20 to mark the beginning of construction on a new hospital in Mentor.
The project was delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but ground has officially broken, generating expectations of amble work opportunities for local union tradesmen and tradeswomen.
Members of multiple building trades affiliated with the Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council stand to benefit from a longstanding relationship with the Cleveland Clinic, as many past Cleveland Clinic projects have been completed under Project Labor Agreements (PLA).
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The Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council officially endorsed the Cleveland Indians lease extension for Progressive Field on Aug. 26, including the corresponding stadium upgrade plan that would create jobs for building trades members. Earlier in the month, the Indians announced they reached a tentative deal with the city of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County and the state of Ohio to renovate the ballpark and extend the team’s lease in Cleveland for at least 15 years. The current lease expires in 2023. The new lease is expected to start in 2022. The county is slated to pay off bonds from the original construction in 2023, coinciding with the expiration of the current lease.
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Union pension funds help finance ‘Artisan’ project
Area leaders officially broke ground on July 29 at the new Artisan Circle Square building in Cleveland’s University Circle neighborhood, which will be built under a Project Labor Agreement.
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Plans to build a new hospital in Lake County under a Project Labor Agreement are back on the table following a one-year pause due to COVID-19, creating hundreds of jobs for area union trades.
In late April, the City of Mentor announced the Cleveland Clinic will break ground later this year on the new hospital project.
The new construction will provide work for 300 to 400 affiliated members of the Cleveland Building Trades, according to Dave Wondolowski, Cleveland Building and Construction Trades Council Executive Secretary
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Members of IBEW Local 38 and their signatory contractors recently donated $34,000 in labor to the Women’s Recovery Center, which offers a multitude of services to women struggling with addiction.
The Women’s Recovery Center is an intensive outpatient center in Cleveland dedicated to women, focusing largely on substance abuse disorder. They use a unique approach to recovery, including care for physical health, emotional healing and family reunification.
Cleveland Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee Director Ken Field was recently appointed to the Ohio State Apprenticeship Council.
The Apprenticeship Council is a state board made up of representatives from various aspects of the industry and the public. It is comprised of three employer representatives, three employee representatives, three public representatives, four advisory members and three representatives from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Field’s appointment was made by Gov. Mike DeWine’s office earlier this year.
President Joe Biden used a stop in Cleveland late last month to push harder for Congressional approval of his infrastructure improvement plan.
Speaking to a group at Cuyahoga Community College, the President argued his families and infrastructure plans will create millions of new jobs and reshape the economy – in need of a boost as the U.S. tries to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cleveland Building Trades Tradeswomen volunteering at Haven House an overflow shelter for women and children.
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Union Heads Praise Biden Infrastructure Plan -President Joe Biden’s 10-year, $2 trillion infrastructure plan calls for more than just the construction of roads and bridges. The plan will include, among other items, green retrofitting of schools, construction of energy-efficient housing and $400 billion for new infrastructure for child care and elder care.
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Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, a member of Laborers Local 223 and former head of the Greater Boston Building Trades Union, was officially appointed U.S. Labor Secretary on March 22. Walsh became the first union member in decades to head the U.S. Department of Labor.
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Major Projects Across Ohio Boost 2021 Construction Outlook
In Ohio, officials closely involved with the union trades are seeing signs of a somewhat positive outlook for 2021, anchored by a number of large projects.
The Columbus area leads the way, with multiple massive, billion-dollar projects underway or set to break ground in 2021.
In 2019, members of the Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council logged about 6.75 million manhours. C/COBCTC Executive Secretary-Treasurer Dorsey Hager believes they topped that mark in 2020.
Thanks to the ongoing building boom in the area, he anticipates the potential for even more hours worked by affiliated unions in 2021.
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Laborers 310 Terry Joyce to Recieves Irish Labor Award
Laborers Local 310 Business Manager Terence P. Joyce was recognized with the Irish Labor Award by the nation’s oldest Irish American newspaper.
On Dec. 18, Joyce was honored by the Irish Echo newspaper during the 10th annual Irish Labor Awards. For the past decade, the New York-based newspaper has recognized the contributions of men and women of Irish heritage who have made a major contribution to the labor movement.
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