Civil contractor Ruthcon has secured a R20-million contract for a new entrance portal to the main Unisa campus in Muckleneuk, Pretoria, and a R10-million contract for a new residential development at Kyalami Hills, in Midrand.The six-month Unisa contract, started in September and consists of a new 500 m access road in Preller street and an associated building.The building, which will house the Unisa Foundation and the Unisa Art Gallery, will also aid in security and access control, provide visitors a place to report to, and act as an information centre.At a recent sod-turning ceremony, a representative of the Tshwane Mayoral Office officially handed over the land donated by the municipality for this purpose.Kyalami Hills is a R148-million, 198-unit residential housing estate on a 12 ha stand in Midrand.Ruthcon went on site in July and expects to complete its portion of the project by November.

Ceremonies key construction projects

The groundbreaking ceremony for construction of new barracks on Fort Myer included three shifts of shovels Tuesday as first a group of Army leaders, support personnel and finally noncommissioned officers took turns hoisting scoops of well-tilled soil and dribbled it into piles a foot away.

Garrison Commander Col. Thomas A. Allmon, MDW Commander Maj. Gen. Guy Swan and Army Corps of Engineers - Baltimore District Col. Peter Mueller did the honors before shovels were handed over to behind-the-scenes facilitators, and lastly, Army and Marine NCOs, who fittingly represented the enlisted personnel for whom the barracks is being built.

Director of Public Works John Russo served as master of ceremonies, providing those in attendance with a history of the soon-to-be-demolished buildings and furnished architectural renderings of what the new more modern structures will look like.

Construction on Ionia Menards to begin in the spring

IONIA - A Menards Inc. official said Thursday that the home improvement chain plans to begin construction on a 230,000-square-foot store in Ionia this coming spring.When completed, the store will be the largest in Ionia County, topping the Ionia Meijer store by nearly 20,000 feet, and besting its rival - the Ionia Lowe's store - by more than double the square footage.Tom O'Neil, real estate manager for Menards Corporation, confirmed that construction on the store will begin in spring 2007, with an estimated opening date in early 2008 - “in time for the spring gardening and building season," O'Neil said.