"The city of La Crescent has been ordered to pay a $1.79 million breach of contract judgment to a construction company hired in 2007 to install a sewer line under the Mississippi River...."

"La Crescent declared MinnComm in default after the company failed to complete the 3-mile sewer and water main extension."

"MinnComm made two unsuccessful attempts in September 2007 to bore under the main channel of the Mississippi River. MinnComm stated...it notified the city in November 2007 the delays were due to obstructions not identified in the original plan."

"The lawsuit...claims numerous breaches of contract....The work was part of the $16 million second phase of the [Yampa Valley Regional] airport's multiyear improvements."

"....lawsuit...contains a 68-point list of allegations including 'defective specifications'...that 'caused delays, lost productivity, and additional costs for labor and equipment and independent materials testing.'"

"...[Routt County attorney John] Merrill said the lawsuit could seek a wide range of damages - as much as $1.4 million."

"The Eclipse, the biggest and most luxurious private yacht ever built, was due to be delivered on December 22 this year."

"...representatives have held a series of anxious meetings with the managers of the German shipyard which has built the superyacht...it is unlikely to be ready until some time in 2010."

"It has two helipads, two swimming pools, 24 guest suites, each of which has its own 6ft cinema screen, and will need a crew of around 60."

"Deutsche Bank AG's Cosmopolitan Resort & Casino complex in Las Vegas, already the most expensive debacle in the city for a single lender, is now two years behind schedule, $2 billion over budget and under water - literally."

"...requires 24-hour pumps and containment walls after workers hit an aquifer....It's another challenge for a project whose delays and redesigns have sparked lawsuits from condominium buyers and sales agents...."

"The current projected total cost of the project, according to analysts: $3.9 billion...."

"Years behind schedule and so over-budget officials have abandoned hope it can recoup the cost of construction, the new metro project is wrecking historic buildings as it cuts through spongy sand and water more than 30 metres below sea-level."

"Built to house a rapid transit system...for now the subway is a gash through the city and risks joining history's great construction fiascos."

"Costs incurred so far on the tunnel already total 1.1 billion euros...an additional 600 million would have to be paid in fees if contracts were cancelled and the tunnel abandoned...."

"...arbitrators have found that Las Vegas managers 'knew from the beginning' that their plans for the Darling Memorial Tennis Center were defective...."

"In a 2-1 decision, which appears to resolve the most expensive arbitration in Las Vegas government history, the panel found that the city owes...about $2.13 million."

"...As of August the city had paid more than $3.3 million...to handle the case. APCO has spent more than $4 million in legal fees...."

"The Oregon Zoo's construction projects in the past five years have been plagued by cost overruns, delays and disjointed management...."

"...The nine projects planned under the bond measure are 'ambitious and complex,'...."

"'Project management was handled differently for each project and was highly dependent on the project manager. This resulted in the zoo taking some unnecessary risks, exceeding its budgets, and not knowing when projects were off-track.'"

"For more than 100 years, American Institute of Architects documents have helped establish ground rules between owners, architects and contractors on projects...."

"The AGC and other contractor groups now support a competing contract form, called ConsensusDOCS. The groups are working to challenge the preeminence of the AIA's A201 document, claiming the most recent version shifts too much risk away from architects and places it on contractors."

"...The newest version of the A201 pushes contractors to bid for a worst-case scenario, rather than bid conservatively and then negotiate a change in scope if the worst arises."

"Nigeria's quest to achieve increased gas utilisation will get a boost with the planned 2010 commissioning of the...Gbaran-Ubie integrated oil and gas project...."

"The project is one of the largest and most important oil, gas, and power projects in the country. It is aimed at reducing routine gas flaring in the oil-rich Niger Delta by harnessing the associated gas produced with oil...."

"...In its first phase, the project will drill 18 oil and 15 gas wells and build a central processing facility to harness oil and gas....will deliver 100 million standard cubic feet per day of gas...."

"South Korea is emerging as an unexpected contender in the global race to build nuclear-power plants, turning up as a finalist for one of the industry's most-coveted projects."

"...contract that could be worth as much as $40 billion to build and run the Arab world's first nuclear-power plants. U.A.E. officials could award the contract as early as the next few weeks."

"Analysts say that the trajectory of the Korean nuclear industry could depend on the outcome of the U.A.E. contract."

"Greece plans to re-launch tenders for two major construction projects to expand an Athens tollway and build an airport by the middle of next year...."

"Funds of about 7.5 billion euros, mainly money from the European Union, are expected to pour into Greek infrastructure projects, including road concessions and airports, by 2014."

"Construction accounts for 11 percent of Greece's GDP and new building projects are seen boosting Greece's ailing economy, which will fall into recession this year for the first time since 1993."

World Famous Skyscrapers Get Retrofits

Emulating New York's recent Empire State Building retrofit, Chicago's Willis (formerly Sears) Tower is planning a major "green" renovation to the 1973-constructed building. The $200 million project is one example of how large commercial buildings are using public and private funds for eco-friendly enhancements. Read on to learn about other high-profile retrofit projects and the various programs to finance them.

"Beardsley, a senior architect...in Chicago, is managing a $200 million to $300 million project to 'green' the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere."

"In design plans, the 'green roof' project would be expanded to the multiple roofs, along with wind turbines and solar panels...."

"The real energy savings will be culled from the 16,000 windows that will be replaced and from lighting automation and reduction."

"...owners of large office buildings are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on green building retrofits...."

"...green-building certification is becoming a new standard required by companies looking to rent office space....Any such competitive advantage is crucial for office building owners, who struggle against an 11.1 percent vacancy rate across the region...."

"The Big Pink switchover cost about $1.5 million, about half defrayed by grants and energy trust rebates...."

"Rialto owner Lorenz Grollo confirmed his firm Equiset was planning a big environmental retrofit of the Melbourne landmark."

"'The question for us is to investigate as much as we can possibly can, see what the world's best practice is and look at the Empire State and other major buildings around the world to see what they're doing."

"Mr Grollo is part of a 22-person Victorian industry delegation touring sustainable buildings in New York, San Francisco and Chicago...."

"The legislation allows [New York] municipalities to leverage federal funds...to finance energy efficiency retrofits and renewable energy systems...."

"...Vice President Joe Biden announced $454 million...to support PACE pilot programs as part of his 'Recovery through Retrofit' plan. Applications for the funding are due in December and awarded on a competitive basis...."

"...PACE bonds finance energy efficiency upgrades, such as double insulated windows, as well as the installation of clean energy technologies, such as solar panels or geothermal heat pumps."

"Retro-commissioning has been an emerging national trend for the past five or six years...."

"...The Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act...created the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, allocating $3.2 billion to local governments to fund energy efficiency initiatives, including retro-commissioning."

"The package also included $4.5 billion specifically for converting government buildings into 'high-performance green buildings.'...."