BSI Constructors Wins AGC Alliant Build America Award for St. Louis Central Library

On March 5, 2014 at their annual convention in Las Vegas, The Associated General Contractors of America presented an Alliant Build America award to BSI Constructors for its work for the St. Louis Public Library.  The award recognized the $70 million Central Library rebirth as the nation’s top renovation project in the Construction Management category. 

“Projects like these reflect the qualities – elite skill, diligence and resolve – that have made the construction industry successful,” said Paul Diederich, the association’s president. “These contractors are setting the standard of excellence in our industry.” 

Joe Kaiser, Executive Vice President at BSI, added, “Central Library was completed with virtually 100% St. Louis trade workers and subcontractors.  So it is a tribute to the quality of our local construction community that we have been recognized with this prestigious national award.”

Central Library, located in downtown St. Louis, was originally designed by noted architect Cass Gilbert (who also designed the U.S. Supreme Court and New York’s Woolworth Building) with significant funding from Andrew Carnegie.  It was rededicated in 2012, 100 years after its initial opening. The updated building includes the complete and historically accurate restoration of all significant architectural features, the creative incorporation of new state-of-the-art systems (HVAC, electrical, communications, life safety, data storage/retrieval), and an additional 83 percent of public space made possible through the creative repurposing of former back-of-house areas.  Central Library’s recognition as one of the world’s great public buildings has only been enhanced by the project. 

Working with BSI on the project were CLR (development consultant), Cannon Design (architect), William Tao & Associates (engineer), and David Mason Associates (structural engineer). 

This is BSI Constructors’ second national Build America Award in the last five years, having also been recognized for Citygarden in 2010.