Much of Stormont Vail Events Center construction finished before industry saw rising cost of materials

As seen in The Topeka Capital-Journal, by Blaise Mesa (Apr. 23, 2021). Photo by Evert Nelson. 

Diligent COVID-19 protocols may have drastically cut down construction cost on the Stormont Vail Events Center, said one of the managers overseeing the project.

Todd Ramsay, senior project manager at McCownGordon, said the cost of some building materials, including steel and lumber, increased between 25% and 30%.

Steel made up almost 10% of the project, or around $3 million, but didn’t have as negative a budgetary impact as it could have had because the project is almost complete.

Longer delays in construction could have also driven up the cost, but Ramsay said the pandemic didn’t stop work because the employees were essential workers. He added that following COVID-19 protocols on the worksite kept employees at work rather than quarantining at home.

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