May 27 2010
Harkins Builders, Inc., a Baltimore-based general contractor, is pleased to announce that the official groundbreaking took place on May 5th for Monarch Mills, a major redevelopment of the 1970s community known as Guilford Gardens in Columbia, Maryland.
Longtime Harkins client Shelter Development is the developer for the Howard County Housing Commission. Howard County Executive Ken Ulman had the pleasure of operating some heavy equipment to tear the roof off one of the old Guilford Gardens porches. A partnership development project between Howard County and Shelter Development, LLC, Monarch Mills will provide 269 new rental apartments in a mixture of multi-generational and mixed-income units.
A swimming pool, a clubhouse, and a volleyball court are among the amenities included in Harkins’ contract. The residential buildings are designed to meet Green Communities design standards, and the clubhouse is designed to meet a LEED Gold rating. Among the many green features will be geothermal wells, high-efficiency light fixtures, and rain-harvesting cisterns that were funded with federal money. Multiple sources are being used to fund the project, including LIHTCs. Harkins Builders, based in Howard County, Maryland, is the general contractor; the architect is Grimm + Parker Architects. The project is expected to be complete in two years.
Source: http://www.harkinsbuilders.com/