Gryphon Construction Management entered the fray at the Everglades on the Bay back in December of 2005. Cabi Developers gave us responsibility for managing and overseeing all financial, design, and construction-related issues for the project. We were handed a GMP contract of $222M between Cabi and their general contractor, which was negotiated by our construction management predecessors, and given the task of ensuring that these funds would complete the twin 52-story towers and 8-story podium by April 1st of 2008.

At that time, the project’s foundations were partially complete and the South Tower shearwall was poured through the 3rd Level. Fast forward 10 months and tower slabs are poured through the 23rd and 20th Levels respectively. MEP risers run through the 16th Levels. Masonry, window, and drywall installations are working their way up from the 8th Level where the Podium/Pool Deck will tie into the towers. The West Podium is on the 3rd Level and the East Podium is set to come out of the ground.

Working as construction managers as we advocate for the Owner has brought a whole new set of challenges and perspectives to us at Gryphon Construction. Overseeing an out-of-state general contractor as it navigates a difficult subcontractor market has proved demanding, yet we are working hard towards the goal of a successfully completed project.

As shell construction at the Everglades on the Bay rolls through the Fall of 2006, the North and South Towers continue to rise up into the Downtown Miami skyline. Topped by the trademark white-banded Cantilever shearwall jump forms, the project is now clearly visible from both I-95 and I-395 which run west and north of the city. In time, the towers will rise 548’, taking prominent positions on the north side of the Miami skyline.

By now, the towers are well into typical floors and are essentially running themselves with 1 shearwall and 1 slab pour per tower per week. Currently, the North Tower shearwall is poured through the 22nd Level, resting at elevation 228’, with deck slabs poured through the 20th. The South Tower shearwall is poured through the 26th Level, elevation 267’, with decks slabs poured through the 23rd.

Meanwhile, the focus of attention has clearly shifted to the Podium, where the project’s critical path is entrenched. In the West Podium, the shell team is preparing to place the second of three 3rd Level pours. In the East Podium, foundations are approximately 80% complete, with scaffolding to the 2nd Level set to commence. As the June ’07 project structural completion deadline looms, the Gryphon Shell team is buckling in for an intense drive to the finish line! Follow the action updated every 30 minutes at: http://gryphonconstruction.oxblue.com/cam1/.