Chris Kay, Turner's vice president and general manager, is heading up the project. He tells GlobeSt.com that the 300-room hotel and conference center and 127,000-sf parking garage will require double shifts to achieve the 17-month delivery schedule. He estimates 280 to 200 workers will end up on the job, ticketed for completion in summer 2003.

Kay says Turner has committed to awarding 14% of the work to Sugar Land-based subcontractors and minority and disadvantaged subcontractors. Linco, a Sugar Land-based concrete subcontractor, already is on the roster.

The Town Square project, Kay says, constitutes a new relationship between the developers and Turner, which has a large footprint in Houston. The construction company's team includes Sam Latona the project executive for Houston's massive conference center hotel development. Turner's Houston skyline line-up includes Chase Tower, Nation's Bank building, Wells Fargo Building and Allen Center.

Cooper Carry Architects of Atlanta designed the hotel and conference center. It will be built with a poured-in place, concrete post-tension technique and finished off with a high-quality exterior of cast stone, brick and granite. The two-story conference center features a 15,500-sf ballroom, eight breakout/meeting rooms, business center, 184-seat restaurant and 26,500 sf of meeting space.

0Atlanta-based Uzun & Case Engineers hold the structural engineering contract and Costello Inc. of Houston, the civil engineer's job. WDG Interior of Dallas and Houston-based geotechnical engineer, Paradigm Consultants, also have been hired.