Preconstruction and Estimating in Pueblo

$78.80 per square foot is the average commercial price the city of Pueblo lists for its Downtown Opportunity Zone, and the same city says commercial approvals currently take about 75 days. Those two numbers are useful, and they are also averages. Your project will not be the average, and the gap between a planning number and a real number is what preconstruction is for.

Preconstruction is the work we do before a contract is signed and a shovel is in the ground: budgets, schedules, constructability reviews, site checks and risk lists. A good estimate is not a single figure, it is a set of figures with the assumptions behind them in plain words. When we hand you a number, we tell you what is in it, what is out of it, and what we would watch.

We offer preconstruction on its own for owners who are still deciding, and as the first phase of a design-build delivery or construction management at risk delivery. Owners with a lender or an investor often need the estimate to hold up under a second reading, and ours is written to do.

We build estimates from quantities, not from rules of thumb. We take off the site, the structure, the envelope and the interiors, price each trade from current quotes, and add general conditions, insurance, bonds where required, overhead and contingency. Each line is labeled so the owner can follow how the total came together.

We also write down what we assumed. Soil conditions, utility locations, permit timelines, unit prices from suppliers, and the schedule we used for escalation all go into a short assumptions list. When something changes later, the list shows whether the change was ours, the owner's or the market's. That clarity avoids arguments in the middle of a job.

Pueblo's own overview says commercial and industrial construction costs about 10 to 15 percent less than the national average. That helps, but local conditions still shift a budget. Soils, utility distance, the need for a lift station or a detention pond, labor demand from big industrial projects and the ability to get specialty subcontractors to a rural site all move the number.

Labor demand is worth a note. The solar-powered rail mill on the south side was announced with about 800 construction jobs, and the wind tower expansion with at least 850 new jobs. When projects like that are in progress, trades are in demand and bids rise. We watch the local calendar and tell owners when timing a bid differently could save money.

The long-rail mill is a useful case study in what can go wrong. A contractor dispute over delays and cost ended with 666 contract workers released on January 3, 2023, about 150 of them Pueblo-based, and the owner's subsidiary sued for damages above $130 million. Reports of the project's total value vary, with one article describing it as $302 million and another as $500 million, which shows how hard a project's true cost can be to pin down.

The lesson for a smaller owner is simple. Scope, schedule and cost should be tested before the contract, not after the trouble starts. We do not say that to criticize anyone. We say it because the best protection against delay and cost overrun is an early, honest estimate with clear scope and a realistic calendar.

Early work frequently includes site evaluation, entitlement support and procurement planning. Our notes on permitting and entitlements cover how we sort out zoning, site plan review and building permits. Our page for long-lead procurement covers the equipment and materials that can set the project calendar.

We also help owners compare delivery methods and structure types. Tilt-wall, metal frame and conventional steel can each win on a given project, and a fair comparison needs the same scope and the same assumptions. We present the three side by side with their schedule and price effects.

The more you can tell us, the tighter the number. A site plan, a geotechnical report, a survey, a program, a target completion date and a budget ceiling all help. If you have none of them, we can work from a concept and give a range, then tighten it as the information arrives.

Codes affect cost as well. Colorado codes are adopted city by city and county by county, so the edition in force depends on the jurisdiction. In Pueblo and Pueblo County the building department lists the 2021 I-codes and the 2023 NEC as currently in effect, and a project near the edge of a jurisdiction can face a different review. We check before we price.

We build the schedule in parallel with the budget. Permit review, long-lead orders, weather windows and inspections all go on the calendar with realistic durations. A price without a schedule is half an answer, since time costs money in carrying costs, lost rent or missed seasons.

If the date is firm, we say what must be decided by when. A late decision on a door package or an electrical service can move the opening date by weeks, and we flag those decisions early. Owners in commercial real estate find that list useful when they brief a lender.

Send us what you have, even if it is only a site and a sketch. We will tell you what the project is likely to cost, how long it will take and what might go wrong. For projects in Pueblo itself, we can usually start with a site visit.

How accurate is an early estimate?

It is a range, and the range narrows as information arrives. A concept-stage number may be wide, a schematic-stage number tighter, and a number from complete drawings tighter still. We state the range and the confidence, and we do not present an early number as a firm price.

Do you charge for preconstruction?

It depends on the scope. Simple budget checks are often part of our bid process. Larger efforts, such as a detailed multi-option study, may be billed and then credited if the project proceeds. We discuss the terms before we begin.

Can you review someone else's estimate?

Yes. We can check quantities, assumptions and omissions, and tell you where we see risk. A second look often finds a missing scope item or an unrealistic allowance, and it is cheaper to find it on paper.

How long do you need to produce a budget?

For a simple building, days. For a complex plant or a multi-phase campus, a few weeks. The time depends on the quality of the information, and on how quickly we can get quotes from specialty subcontractors.

Where do you find your unit prices?

From current subcontractor and supplier quotes, local labor rates, and our own records on similar work. We update them as the market moves and tell you which are firm and which are allowances. For historic downtown work we also consult the Union Avenue Historic District conditions, which add their own risks.