Callahan is proud of the progress we’ve made growing our footprint in the Tri-State area. When we opened our White Plains office, we were determined to bring the quality we’re known for to new clients across the markets we know best—multi-family and affordable housing, mixed-use and retail developments, and senior living communities.
Like any region, there’s some level of uncertainty everywhere you look—but we’re excited about what the future holds in the Empire State. Here are a few trends and developments we’re keeping a close eye on:
PACT is a NYCHA program designed to leverage private and non-profit partners to convert eligible public housing properties to Project-Based Section 8. This allows for much-needed capital improvements while maintaining affordability for residents.
Since 2016, more than $7B has been invested into PACT projects, but NYCHA estimates it will take $78B to fully fund the program. There’s a massive opportunity here for meaningful public-private partnerships, though there’s still a lot of work to do.
At Callahan, we routinely work with developers and public agencies to bring affordable housing to life—and we’re optimistic about the positive impact PACT can have in the years ahead.
It’s no secret it’s expensive to live in Manhattan. Over the years, more and more people have looked outside the five boroughs for housing—especially along the Metro-North corridor—finding better value in communities where they can still commute into the city if needed.
We’re expecting to see continued growth in market-rate housing across the suburbs north and east of NYC, extending into upstate New York and parts of New Jersey. This trend opens the door for residents to get into the market without needing to change jobs just to afford it.
Callahan recently completed Alexander Crossing in Yonkers, a project that supports work-from-home lifestyles while still offering proximity to transit. It’s the type of flexible, future-ready development we expect to see more of.
If you can’t build out, build up. That’s the mindset taking hold in places like Port Chester, New Rochelle, and White Plains, where local leaders are updating zoning to allow for taller residential buildings.
In many of these small-to-mid-sized cities, there’s limited space to expand outward, but increased height allowances for MDUs (multi-dwelling units) could help unlock more housing supply where it’s needed most.
This kind of local policy shift could be just the spark needed to get some long-anticipated projects moving, and we’re watching it closely.
This isn’t unique to New York: cities everywhere are dealing with how to repurpose underutilized office and retail buildings. And it’s a bigger issue in Westchester because some of these buildings are so large. Converting them to residential sounds great in theory, but in practice, it’s not always that simple. Between the size and shape, structural constraints, zoning, and cost, it can be a real challenge to make the numbers work.
One potential solution? Blending retail and residential. That’s the approach behind two of our projects, New City and Bay Terrace, where we’re helping turn traditional shopping centers into mixed-use destinations that better reflect today’s living and shopping habits.
Since COVID, our industry has dealt with its fair share of curveballs, from supply chain disruptions and labor shortages to shifting immigration policies and the ever-present wildcard of interest rates and tariffs.
It’s a lot to navigate, which is why strong preconstruction services are more valuable than ever. At Callahan, we help our clients get a clearer picture up front so budgeting and planning doesn’t turn into guesswork. And when it makes sense, our ability to self-perform sitework can create efficiencies that help control costs and improve quality at the same time while most importantly mitigating as much risk as possible.
The New York market and the surrounding Tri-State area represent real opportunity for Callahan. We’re excited to continue working alongside our public and private sector partners to get much-needed projects out of the ground despite the headwinds our industry continues to face.
To learn more on happenings in the New York market or how Callahan can help with your next construction proejct please contact David Morrow or Phil Dinan.
The first week of March is known throughout our industry as Women in Construction week, wherein we recognize both the achievements of the women who lead projects from the jobsite and the home office, as well as celebrate how far the A/E/C world has come in creating opportunities for every member of the team.
This year’s theme is “Together We Rise,” a fitting statement considering how unique the construction workplace is in banding together in pursuit of a common goal – and now, more than ever, we are united behind the pursuit of bringing even more women into the fold as we work to build tomorrow’s great buildings.
How does Callahan rise to the occasion?
Any firm that signals an appreciation or support of women in construction needs to put their money where their mouth is. A 2023 report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reveals that 10.8% of construction workers in the United States are women – clearly, we have some room to grow in creating more opportunities for women to enter the industry. How does Callahan do this? In a few distinct ways:
We advance women’s voices – from the field to the executive team: Callahan believes in providing everyone with the opportunity to lead teams and projects to the best possible outcome. Advancing from within is a core Callahan value, and we’re proud to have women leading multiple aspects of our day-to-day business strategy and project performance.
We create open forums for communication: You can’t call your firm a leader in letting all voices be heard if there’s no avenue for dialog. From regular company forums to social events and everything in between, Callahan culture prioritizes equal amplification of voices and sensitivity towards issues that impact each employee differently.
We put our boots on the ground in the communities we serve: Many organizations that Callahan supports through financial donations and volunteerism help to address issues that uniquely affect women. Guided by the women on our team, our organization supports nonprofits and other community institutions via direct feedback from our employees.
We believe mentoring is a team sport: Mentorship opportunities abound at Callahan, and a forward-looking organization like ours creates numerous opportunities for seasoned executives and field leaders to provide next-generation workers with insights that will transform their careers. With many women among our up-and-coming project management teams, we are committed to giving them the tools they need to advance to the next level of leadership.
It takes an entire industry to make change permanent
Callahan is proud to support Women in Construction Week, and we remind our partners and colleagues that the best way to drive opportunities for women on their teams is through thoughtful collaboration, meaningful mentorship, and ongoing learning. And if you’re looking for ways to understand some of the unique challenges women face in our industry, consider leading a dialog with your teams on one of the topics below.
Top discussion topics for Women in Construction Week:
Being open to discussing thought-provoking conversations has helped our teams immensely and shaped our culture for the better. Let’s all make the 2025 Women in Construction week more impactful than ever:
For more information on Callahan’s culture, click here.
There was a time when LEED certification dominated sustainability conversations in construction. It played a crucial role in making the industry more environmentally aware by rewarding buildings for incorporating green features. While LEED remains impactful, a shift is occurring toward another standard: Passive House Certification (CPHB).
Prescriptive vs. Performance-Based: Understanding the Key Difference
One of the biggest distinctions between LEED and Passive House is their approach to achieving energy efficiency:
What Makes a Building Passive House Certified?
Unlike LEED, there is no single template or set of mandatory design choices to achieve Passive House Certification. Instead, buildings must meet strict energy performance targets through a combination of strategies. Here are the key elements:
Breaking the Cost Myth: Passive House Doesn’t Always Mean More Expensive
A common misconception about Passive House construction is that it carries a hefty price tag. However, many developers are finding that Passive House projects can be cost-neutral when considering long-term energy savings and reduced reliance on mechanical systems.
Key cost factors to consider:
Why Callahan is Leading the Way
At Callahan, we recognize that Passive House is the future of high-performance building. That’s why along with multiple successfully completed, Passive House Certified Projects and counting, we now have over 30 Certified Passive House Builders on staff, ready to guide clients through the process. By taking a collaborative, lessons learned, performance-focused approach, we help developers meet certification standards while maximizing efficiency and cost savings.
“We hired Callahan because your project team possessed the flexibility and keen awareness that the success of the project hinged on the coordination of multiple professionals, some of whom represent non-traditional design and building techniques. Callahan was able to adapt quickly to multiple challenges posed by Passive House design and tolerances. Callahan seamlessly coordinated the entire project team, driving solutions to unique building challenges while pressing hard towards our project deadline.”
-Kurt Therrien, President, The Kensington Investment Group
For more information on our sustainable building expertise or to learn more about our CPHB-certified team, contact us today.
In the past year, the economy’s ups and downs have affected every industry in some way. These fluctuations have often led to some level of uncertainty that impacted confidence on the part of both consumers and businesses, affecting everything from materials prices to the cost of groceries. Fortunately, if current forecasts hold tight, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
The biggest impact will be whether the Fed continues to cut interest rates following a quarter-point cut in December. Current predictions vary in amount and frequency, but the overall consensus is that the Fed isn’t done cutting. This impacts key construction industry metrics, including borrowing, which boosts optimism and confidence with a lower cost of debt. Additionally, given rates are still historically high, there’s certainly hope for further reductions to spur more construction starts.
According to the Dodge Construction Network, residential and non-residential construction starts are expected to grow, along with non-building construction, thanks to federal funds flowing into infrastructure projects. While hotels and offices aren’t expected to surge in the coming year, healthcare and manufacturing construction continue to show little signs of slowing down after a strong performance in 2024.
Like other construction management firms, Callahan is looking ahead with optimism as we see increased activity in our business development pipeline in both our Massachusetts and New York markets. From mixed-use retail to multifamily housing, the projects expected to kick off in 2025 are exciting for numerous reasons, such as addressing severe shortfalls in housing stock to signaling more consumer confidence than we’ve seen in recent years. Some projects we’re particularly excited about include 200Q in Wakefield, MA; Leefort Terrace in Salem, MA; The Ridgeway in Yonkers, NY; Spark on Cedar in Newington, CT; and many others to be announced later in Q1.
In 2025, we look forward to building together and launching forward with numerous opportunities for shared success. Contact us today to discuss how we can get your next project out of the concept stage and into the ground.
Callahan Construction and Velney Construction Team Up to Meet Twin Challenges
By Pat Callahan
The need for housing in Massachusetts and across the country is immense. As a general contractor and construction manager with a wealth of expertise in building housing of all types (i.e. market-rate, affordable, age-restricted) Callahan sees how critical it is to bring these projects online. However, especially in today’s market, it is extremely challenging.
One of the biggest challenges we see in the industry right now goes beyond simply financing the work at the state level. The 2021 MBTA Communities law as well as the recently passed Affordable Homes Act, are major steps in the right direction, but we see some additional steps needed to truly maximize the impact of public dollars – which is why our company recently took the proactive step to form a strategic partnership with Somerville, -based contractor Velney Construction.
Right now, the construction industry faces tremendous change as generational shifts that are impacting every layer of society also alter how we do business. Many seasoned professionals are aging out of the industry, leaving voids we desperately need to fill to meet the ambitious goals of the housing bills.
Callahan Wins Too
It is essential to build the bench of the next-generation of Massachusetts general contractors to ensure our industry is future-proof. Recently, groups like the SouthCoast Workforce Housing Coalition have been created to address the need to create good-paying jobs and increase housing stock in order to future-proof our workforce, a goal that our company shares with state leaders.
As Callahan continues to grow both geographically and in the scope of the projects we manage, partnering with companies like Velney will enable us to provide more resources to our customers while also ensuring that smaller and historically disadvantaged business have access to the tools necessary to grow professionally.
We see Velney as an ideal partner for pursuing joint venture opportunities on new housing projects and for helping a next-generation company invest in the tools needed to grow and succeed.
Firms like Velney often find it difficult to afford the resources necessary to grow smart and manage risk appropriately. We have found that many startup construction organizations fail due to financial strains on their business, or because they have taken on work without the proper resources to manage it.
Callahan will be helping Velney train its own employees both in practical jobsite skills along with utilizing technology tools such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), Procore and estimating software, along with internal resources like legal, accounting, risk management and quality control.
We believe this partnership will let Velney build a track record for sustainable and manageable growth, with the goal of eventually competing on their own with other larger GCs.
Higher Construction Costs Hurt WMBEs
New building codes, as well as changes to federal policy such as the 2023 overhaul of the Davis-Bacon Act, sharply increased construction costs. Massachusetts’ new Home Energy Rating System (HERS) program also increased costs to build while passing future savings from reduced energy expenses on to the consumer down the road.
While these programs ultimately aim to protect workers and consumers, they also make it increasingly difficult for young companies to enter into an already expensive industry. Simply getting a shovel in the ground doesn’t mean a business is instantly profitable, as the road is long and challenging from signing a contract to being financially stable – and we believe companies like Velney can get there with some strategic support.
For Callahan, this relationship helps us become more diverse, grow our MBE/WBE partner base, provides our customers with more options and gives us the pride of helping others. We also see it as a critical way to help address the state’s housing shortfall by bringing on resources to help us build faster and smarter, all the while training next-generation workers who will someday build these projects on their own long after the current crop of leaders age out of the business. Massachusetts has made great strides to address the housing gap. We at Callahan are excited that this partnership with Velney will not only support ambitious investment in this state and the Northeast but also in a company that is ready to rise to the next level.
This story originally appeared in Banker & Tradesman
Callahan is committed to building strong, long-lasting client relationships, and to consistently delivering solutions that exceed expectations. Contact us today about starting your next project.