Julia Bowman has joined TFMoran, Inc. as a Stormwater Engineering Intern for Summer 2022. Ms. Bowman is currently studying Environmental Engineering at the University of New Hampshire. Bowman has previous work experience as an Undergraduate Research Assistant at UNH, creating control charts for southern New Hampshire towns to monitor chemicals in drinking water.
Welcome to the team, Julia!
Benjamin Hodsdon has returned to TFMoran’s Civil Engineering Department as an intern for the summer of 2022. Mr. Hodsdon joined us last summer as part of our internship program, and we’re happy to have him back! He is working in both the Bedford office and the Portsmouth office. Ben is in the Honors Program at the University of New Hampshire, working towards his Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering, Class of 2023.
Welcome back, Ben!
TFMoran has joined Plan NH, an organization dedicated to creating vibrant communities across the state of New Hampshire. Members include planners, builders, designers, or anyone who cares for the built environment and community design and their impact on towns and neighborhoods.
Each year, Plan NH holds its annual Merit Award Program to honor exemplary built environment projects that have a positive impact on the community. TFMoran has been honored to be a part of the winning project team for the Bank of NH Stage, which received a 2020 Merit Award of Excellence.
TFMoran hosted the New Hampshire Commercial Investment Board of REALTORS® barbecue on Thursday, June 9th at the Bedford office. After a rainy morning and an afternoon shower, the weather cooperated and was ideal for an outdoor event. Over one hundred CIBOR members and TFMoran staff enjoyed the cookout, which featured a buffet provided by Tidewater Catering, and ice cream by The Inside Scoop. TFMoran has been hosting the annual NH CIBOR cookout for over 16 years! It was great to get back to business after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. TFMoran is proud to partner with CIBOR each year for such a great event.
Dylan Cruess, TFM’s COO, started out the presentation by welcoming the members and thanking the TFM staff for their efforts in making the barbecue a success. NH CIBOR president Scott Forte presented Joe Friedman of Skyline Realty, LLC with the REALTOR-of-the-Year award, and Jeremy Forest of Bridges Bros Movers with the Affiliate-of-the Year award. Additional raffle items were also presented.
The Structural Engineers of New Hampshire (SENH) recently held their 2022 Excellence In Structural Engineering Awards event on May 18th!
Entries were judged on creativity, complexity, innovation, ingenuity, and suitability of the structural design for each of three categories; Building Structures, Bridge & Transportation Structures, and Special Structures.
TFMoran was honored to receive the award in the Building Structures category for the Nashawtuc Country Club renovation and addition in Concord, MA.
Posters of each entry were on display during the meeting. Click on the pdf link to view TFMoran’s Poster or read the description below to learn more:
Nashawtuc Country Club located in Concord, MA is the site of complete renovation and addition to an existing country club community building totaling 40,000 square feet. The addition includes a new restaurant, recreation, and function spaces, including a grand ballroom with architecturally exposed steel trusses. Renovations included repairs, reconfiguration of column locations, support of new mechanical equipment, and a complete lateral load resisting systems upgrade. The existing building was comprised of a variety of framing systems and materials while the new additions were comprised of a hybrid graming system of wood and steel framing.
Congratulations to all award recipients!
New England Real Estate Journal’s May 27th issue features an Industry Leaders Spotlight with 11 professionals from numerous industries, including TFMoran’s Chief Operating Officer, Dylan Cruess. Dylan gives his perspective on how the first half of 2022 is going in the engineering field. Check out the full article here or continue reading below.
New England Real Estate Journal
Industry Leaders Spotlight – Engineer
This has been quite a year thus far! I started my article off last year with the exact same sentiment. Many of the same growth factors and uncertainties from last year are still present now. Despite many economic challenges we are experiencing, including the continued rise of construction costs, the availability of building materials, and now rising interest rates, development in Southern New Hampshire and Northern Massachusetts remains incredibly strong and resilient. The pent-up demand from not building during the height of the pandemic, changing consumer demand for housing and entertainment, and the large amount of private and public capital available in the market has fueled new developments in just about every sector.
Over the past few years, New Hampshire has seen a huge in-migration of the population as people have moved out of major cities seeking a more rural or suburban lifestyle. This in-migration population has caused the demand for housing and other services to increase, which in turn has led to a huge increase in new multifamily and single-family housing developments throughout the southern part of the state and the upper valley. Northern New Hampshire has also seen an incredible increase in demand as people are purchasing second homes. Along with increased housing demand, we are seeing rapidly rising housing and rent prices which are leading to an affordability crisis for many people. In New Hampshire, there is a very strong push for affordable housing projects and there are many available sources of public funding to help with the economic viability of having below-market rental rates.
Another sector that we continue to see very strong demand for in New Hampshire is warehouse and manufacturing projects. International supply chain problems have led to a noticeable trend of companies bringing their distribution, product storage, and even their manufacturing back to the United States, and more specifically New Hampshire. We are seeing new facilities being proposed across many different sectors including aerospace, defense, construction materials, and food processing, among others. Warehouse and manufacturing projects often require infrastructure improvements such as increased electric capacity or the availability of municipal water and sewer. These requirements may limit where facilities can be located, resulting in projects concentrated around the suburbs close to larger municipalities that already have the necessary infrastructure in place.
From a design and permitting point of view, one of the largest challenges we are seeing to development projects moving forward is the unpredictable length of time it will take to obtain all the necessary permits. We are often asked by our clients how long it will take to go through the permitting process so they can set timeframes in their Purchase and Sale Agreements or plan for construction. With new environmental regulations for wetlands impacts and stormwater runoff requirements, we are often unable to give a definitive timeline for permits. We have been recommending to our clients that they substantially increase the time for permitting or have multiple extension provisions in their contracts with Sellers to mitigate the impact of permitting delays.
In conclusion, even with the many economic uncertainties the economy is facing including inflation, rising interest rates, and supply chain disruptions for construction materials, we continue to see very strong activity for development projects going forward across many different sectors of the economy. The demand for new housing, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, and other projects continues to be greater than the uncertainties and challenges that developers are facing when considering new projects. Hopefully, this trend continues through all of 2022 and beyond!
TFMoran Environmental Permitting Specialist, Paul O’Hanlon volunteered with the NH Envirothon Student Science Competition last week, held at NHTI in Concord.
NH Envirothon is an annual competition that introduces students to the STEM field to build real-world connections and gain experience in the professional field. Its mission is to introduce students to the STEM field at a young age, providing skills in protecting our natural resources and conservation in conjunction with the growth of society today.
Students participating in the Envirothon are subject to testing across a broad range of subjects within the Environmental Field: Introducing or honing skills in soils, aquatic ecology, wildlife, forestry, and current events in the field today. Volunteers accompanied student groups to testing “stations”, providing guidance and information as needed (without revealing answers, of course).
Once testing was completed, students gathered in an auditorium to hear from guest speakers working in the STEM field, and the winners were announced.
TFMoran is proud to be a sponsor of the Bedford PTG‘s event held this past weekend at Bedford High School. TFMoran’s COO Dylan Cruess, his daughter Cate and Senior Structural Engineer Tom Lamb’s daughter Kiera participated in this fun event.
The Color Blast Fun Run/Walk raises funds for the PTG’s mission of providing students, staff, and families enriching activities in schools and in our community.
Participants for the event run or walk the predetermined course while getting covered in colorful chalk. Music played, and water stations were spread throughout the course. When you cross the finish line, you can expect to look like a colorful piece of art!
Afterward, the PTG hosted a party with food, music, face painting, and photo stations for runners to enjoy.
TFMoran is proud to be a gold-level sponsor for this event. We had a blast participating!
Check out WMUR News coverage of the event here!
TFMoran is a wing sponsor for the Angels Giving Back 5K Road Race to be held on June 11, 2022, in Johnston, RI.
Angels Giving Back is a non-profit organization honoring Mario and Valia Coletta, the founders of Colbea Enterprises / Seasons Corner Market. This charitable organization seeks to honor their legacy and generosity, holding several fundraisers throughout the year to raise money for various charities that were close to their hearts. 100% of profits raised at this event will be donated to the Alzheimer’s Association, the Tomorrow Fund, and Polycystic Kidney Foundation.
Jim Robinson has joined TFMoran, Inc. as a Civil Project Manager in the Bedford office. Mr. Robinson joins TFMoran with over 26 years of experience, most recently in Civil Site design and Stormwater Design for residential subdivisions and commercial site development. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Columbia University School of Engineering & Applied Science. Jim is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of New Hampshire and a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).
Welcome to the team, Jim!
