Providence College students should be used to the earth movers and construction crews by now. more

Smart-growth and economic-stimulus arguments haven’t convinced state leaders to bring back Rhode Island’s historic-tax-credit program for the past four years, but perhaps the sight of Providence’s tallest and most recognizable building vacant will. more

Supporters of the Urban Collaborative Accelerated Program don hard hats Oct. 9 to mark the start of construction at the school’s expanded site along the Service Road near Interstate 95 in Providence. From left: Stephen Hourahan, senior adviser to Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee; David Haffenreffer, chair, Fund for UCAP board; Providence Mayor Angel Taveras; Steve Guglielmo, Saccoccio & Associates; Karen Warfield, director, diversity & community affairs, Textron, Inc.; Providence Councilman Bryan Principe; Frank Gustafson, CASE Construction (in background) and Mark Saccoccio, principal, Saccoccio & Associates. more

WARWICK – T.F. Green Airport will move ahead with plans to extend its runway and enhance airplane safety thanks to $110 million in federal funds, The Associated Press reported last week. more

Confidence among U.S. homebuilders climbed in September to the highest level in more than six years, adding to signs of progress in residential construction. more

The good news is that from the depths of the Great Recession, Rhode Island has seen a 50 percent increase in new-home starts. Unfortunately, that still puts the state at 30 percent of the average home-construction starts registered from 2000 to 2003 (and further still from the subprime-lending-fueled peak of later years). And well short of a level that can sustain the construction industry at previous employment levels. more

Workers install wooden piles as well as rebar for concrete beneath the new Sakonnet River Bridge on Sept. 24. The new bridge is on the left; the old one on the right. Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee joined officials from the R.I. Department of Transportation for a tour of the new bridge the same day. DOT opened northbound traffic on Route 24 onto the new bridge Sept. 20. Southbound traffic on Route 24 will also shift to the new bridge. The bridge and ramps are set for completion in 2013. Construction crews broke ground on the $163.7 million bridge project, which carries Route 24 between Tiverton and Portsmouth, in April 2009. more

Age: 37 more

Builders broke ground in January on the most U.S. single-family homes in more than four years and permits for future construction rose, an indication the industry’s momentum carried over into 2013. more

Age: 36 more