News Articles - 2007

Click on the links below to read the documents.

• Granite Construction Company, Indio Asphalt Plant has earned the coveted National Asphalt Pavement Association's Diamond Achievement Commendation for Excellence
  
  The Desert Sun
  December 30, 2007
  
  Granite Construction Company, Indio Asphalt Plant has earned the coveted National Asphalt Pavement Association's Diamond Achievement Commendation for Excellence in hot-mix asphalt plant/site operations. Earning the commendation required Granite's commitment to the plant site's appearance, operations, environmental practices, safety, permit and regulatory compliance and community relations.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• The Village News Issue 48, Volume 11 Thursday, November 29th, 2007
  
  The November 9 board meeting of the San Diego Association of Governments included a presentation by Crystal Howard of EnviroMINE on the need for more construction aggregate production in San Diego County.
  
  “It’s going to affect everybody,” said San Diego County Supervisor Ron Roberts. “We have increasing demand with falling supplies and reserves, and we have a political system that makes it difficult if not impossible to be able to create these things.”
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Earth-Friendly Businesses Clean Up: Nine Firms Hailed For Pollution Prevention In S.J.
  
  September 18, 2007
  By Reed Fujii The Record Staff Writer STOCKTON - Preventing pollution involves a lot of hard work - whether it's collecting tons of consumer-electronic waste, building an artificial wetland to treat winery wastewater or draining sewage from boats throughout the San Joaquin Delta. . . .
  
  » Granite Construction Co. The heavy construction specialist makes a diverse effort to recycle waste materials, avoid polluting and toxic materials, cut energy use, employ solar panels and greatly reduce dust emissions from its operations. Its work has reduced materials going to landfills by tons, saved money and improved the community's environment.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Indio quarry wins environmental award By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, The Press-Enterprise
  
  8/22/07 - Granite Construction Co.'s Indio-based division has won a silver environmental excellence award from the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association for its Coachella Valley quarry.The award is partly based on how a company exceeds regulatory requirements in regard to the environment, according to a statement from Granite Construction. A company can't have a pattern of violations for two years prior to applying for the award, according to the statement.It's the first time the Indio quarry has received the award.
  
  (Click here to read the story.)

• Click here to read about Liberty Quarry in the August 2007 edition of Contractor News & Views.

• Junior Grizzlies Set To Play Ball On A Field Of Dreams
  
  08/14/07 - Pacific Coast League (PCL) Fresno Grizzlies
  
  Special Education students are ready to hit the first ball in a field built just for them, thanks to the Fresno Grizzlies Community Fund, Clovis Unified School District and Granite Construction. The official "first ball" will be thrown out at a ribbon cutting ceremony Friday, August 17 at 10 a.m. on the Junior Grizzlies Field of Dreams.
  
  The new synthetic turf baseball field, located at Gateway High School in Clovis, will serve kids with physical and mental disabilities, and is the first of its kind in the area.
  
  The field is the result of hundreds of community members coming together in a unique way and involved the volunteer efforts of more than 20 companies, Clovis Unified and the Fresno Grizzlies Community Fund. Within 80 days of the May 31 groundbreaking event, the field has been transformed from an all grass field to a rubberized diamond where children in wheelchairs or using walking aids will be able to play on their own.
  
  "This field has been a dream of ours for quite some time. From start to finish this field was truly a community project. Without the help and support of Granite Construction we would not be where we are today, ready to open our Field of Dreams." Said Brian Glover, Grizzlies Managing Partner
  
  WHAT: Grizzlies ownership and players will be joined by CUSD Board members, District Superintendent Terry Bradley, Granite Construction representatives and Special Education students to officially open the Junior Grizzlies Field of Dreams.
  WHERE: Gateway High School, 1550 Herndon Ave., Clovis
  WHEN: Friday, August 17th at 10:00 a.m.
  PHOTO/ Ceremonial ribbon cutting at home plate and Grizzlies players will play ball with
  VIDEO: Junior Grizzlies and CUSD Special Education students.
  
  The custom-designed field can accommodate wheelchairs and other walking assistance devices, while helping prevent injuries. The field has been constructed with in-kind support totaling more than $200,000 by Granite Construction and its team of sub contractors. Financial contributions include a $100,000 grant from the Fansler Foundation, $25,000 from SC Johnson, and $5,000 from St. Agnes Hospital. The Clovis Unified School District donated the land and will be responsible for maintenance. The Grizzlies Community Fund coordinated the fundraising and construction of the project.
  
  This field is a state-of-the-art ball field in the Central Valley giving special needs youth from around the area a unique opportunity to participate in recreational activities. The Junior Grizzlies, a baseball and soccer league for kids with physical and mental disabilities, will utilize the field at night and on weekends for practice and games. Clovis Unified School District will use the field during school hours for special education activities.
  
  The event is free and open to the public. All media are encouraged to attend. For more information, please contact Sarah Marten at 559-994-5687 or visit www.juniorgrizzlies.org.

• We all pay the price of shipping rock
  
  By: OLDEN "O.B." JOHNSON - Commentary
  
  We easily forget that modern construction still relies on the most basic materials: wood, steel, rock and sand. We forget that rock and sand ---- known collectively as aggregate ---- are the main ingredients for the asphalt and concrete we use every day to build schools, churches, roads, parks and police stations. We also forget that the cost of construction materials can sap our taxes.
  
  Even things forgotten can have real effects. Our region is learning how real the scarcity of everyday materials such as rock and sand can be. While alarmists attempt to delay critical projects such as the proposed Liberty Quarry, our region is facing difficult choices about how to serve the public good with limited tax dollars.
  
  Liberty Quarry opponents in Temecula, by trying to kill the project without any facts supporting their claims, have selfishly placed communities throughout Southwest Riverside County at risk.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Mentoring Today for Tomorrow at USA Federal Credit Union
  
  July 14, 2007 - Mentoring Today for Tomorrow at USA Federal Credit Union on Madison in Murrieta. The credit union was one of several sponsors for Eva Johnson's Mentoring Today for Tomorrow group to visit Sacramento on Sunday, July 15 through Wednesday, July 18, to see the capital and go on tours by Senator Dennis Hollingsworth, Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries, and Chief Deputy Director for the California Department of Toxic Substances Leonard Robinson. Granite Construction, Soboba Casino, Saddleback Train Station's John Stillman, and Mervyn's Temecula (for tee shirts) also sponsored the trip.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• State recognizes quarry area as mineral resource
  
  By: NICOLE SACK - Staff Writer
  
  TEMECULA -- A state agency sees it as nothing more than an acknowledgment of what anyone driving down the freeway can see: There are a lot of rocks in the hills southwest of Temecula.
  
  But to the city, it is an effort by the state to boost the chances of a quarry being built in those hills, and officials aren't taking it lightly.
  
  The State Mining and Geology Board voted last week to classify the site for Granite Construction Co.'s proposed Liberty Quarry as land with recognized mineral deposits that should be considered in land-use planning.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Open Space Park on track
  
  Site work, grading and the creation of trails at Yolo County's Open Space Park near Capay has been authorized by supervisors.
  
  The county board unanimously authorized spending $511,629 for the work with JA Gonsalves & Son Construction on Tuesday at the 41-acre park located near Cache Creek on County Road 85, about a third of a mile north of Highway 16. The area was donated to the county by Granite Construction in 2004.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Quarry supported on a foundation of facts
  
  By: GARY W. JOHNSON - Commentary
  What is a fact? A fact is concrete, no pun intended. A fact can be tested and observed, proved or disproved.
  
  Columnist Mark Mush's latest column attacking the proposed Liberty Quarry ("Cracks in Granite's claims showing," March 1) is glaringly lacking in facts. He alleges that quarry supporters do not base their arguments on fact. Yet, he offers no facts himself to support his position.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Bella Vista High School Field of Dreams: Thanking Those who Helped Us
  
  Special recognition will go to our fantastic volunteers and contributors at our April 11 Ribbon Cutting. Here’s a short list (that should be much longer) of those who were key to the Fields happening as well and as quickly as they did:
  Granite Construction (mass grading of 12000 cubic yards)
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• Mural Gets New Shine
  
  TWENTYNINE PALMS — The Action Council for 29 Palms Inc. anounced the cleaning and preservation of the “Bill and Prudie Underhill and The Desert Trail” mural.
  
  Wayne Winiecki, a local mural restorer, recently completed work on the mural, which is located on the east wall of The Desert Trail building on Adobe Road.
  
  Funding for the preservation work on the mural came from a grant received from local business operators Granite Construction and Superior Ready Mix.Granite Construction and Superior Ready Mix share a facility just east of Twentynine Palms, just off Twentynine Palms Highway.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• ASC/AGC National Construction Management Competition 2007
  
  Heavy/Civil Division
  
  UALR's Construction Management Heavy/Civil Team placed THIRD in the NATION at the annual Associated Schools of Construction and Associated General Contractors student competition. The team, coached by Michael Tramel, consisted of Waylon Corley, Angel Corley, Lisa Bishop, Jeremy Land, Miyoshi Stringer, and Kevin Young. Over 242 universities across the country competed in seven regional competitions with only the first place teams advancing to the Nationals held in San Antonio, TX. The Heavy/Civil Division consisted of teams from Auburn University, Brigham Young University, Oregon State University, Penn College, University of Cincinnati, University of Nebraska, and University of Arkansas Little Rock.
  
  Granite Construction Company, based in California, sponsored the National Competition and was responsible for compiling and judging the construction problem. Granite selected the $14,680,328.00 Whitewater River Bridge Project as the competition problem. This project consisted of elevating an 1100-foot section of roadway over the Whitewater River Channel. The existing dip crossing was to be replaced with an all-weather crossing to alleviate issues with channel flow conditions and flash flooding. The project also contained of a 437-foot pre-cast concrete girder bridge, extensive channel excavation/modifications, landscaped roadway side slopes, curb inlets, storm drain outlets, and an electrical structure. The major challenge was removing and replacing the bridge along its original centerline while still providing an open 28-foot minimum roadway width. There was also extensive channel work to be performed and construction had to be scheduled around rainy season and year round flash flooding.
  
  (Click here to read the full story.)

• More Shelter for Madera's Homeless
  
  20-bed facility will help keep families from being separated.
  
  In a bid to help keep families together as parents struggle to overcome homelessness, the Madera Rescue Mission on Thursday dedicated a new 20-bed family shelter.
  
  (Click here to read the full story. )

• California Department of Toxic Substances Control Recognizes Granite Construction for Environmental Stewardship
  
  SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) will recognize Granite Construction’s fleet repair facility as a Pollution Prevention Model Shop, the first privately-held construction company in California to achieve this distinction. DTSC Chief Deputy Director Leonard Robinson will present the certification on Apr. 12 during a brief ceremony at Granite’s French Camp fleet facility. The voluntary program helps participating businesses reduce operational costs by using environmentally friendly best management practices.
  
  Granite’s maintenance facility services 300 vehicles and 100 pieces of small equipment. The company successfully reduced its solvent waste generation by implementing water-based cleaning technologies, and reduced the purchase and disposal costs of used oil by approximately 40 percent with its oil analysis program. The company also estimates that it realized an annual disposal savings of $2,300 by using specialized mops that soak up oil, but not water or anti-freeze.
  
  (Click here to read the press release.)

• Plans for Rosemary's Mountain quarry grinding along
  
  FALLBROOK ---- A developer with plans to excavate gravel from Rosemary's Mountain still has permits to file, land to buy and $20 million worth of road work to complete before it can begin operating at the site near Interstate 15 and State Route 76, officials said last week.
  
  However, with a key land-use permit in hand, the developer, Granite Construction Co., says it is confident it can complete most of those tasks and break ground at the small mountain visible from I-15 by late summer.
  
  (Read the entire article here.  Source: North County Times)

• Special needs horse camp in La Selva gets makeover
  
  Thanks to a $40,000 labor and materials grant, a horse farm for the disabled is getting a life-saving makeover. By spring 2006, the Monterey Bay Horsemanship and Therapeutic Center's covered arena was so worn, the horses were literally between a rock and hard place. Most of the sand floor had eroded, exposing hard-packed, pebble-laden dirt that hurt the horses' feet. But the center is run on a bare-bones budget and supported by volunteers, and did not have the money for repairs. "We were getting desperate," said Anne Phipps, the center's director. "If the program was to continue, we really needed the help."  She appealed to parents of her riders and Granite Construction Co. agreed to donate the time, equipment and supplies needed to rebuild the arena from the ground up.
  
  (Read the entire press release here.)

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