Blackstone Group buys Willis Tower, Chicago's tallest building, for $1.3B

Days after reports emerged that the Willis Tower was for sale and that New York-based Blackstone Group was the front-runner to buy the building, it appears a deal is done and the iconic Chicago tower will sell for a Chicago record price.

Though some speculated the price might climb to $1.5 billion, MarketWatch reported Blackstone (NYSE: BX) will pay $1.3 billion, the highest price ever paid for an American office tower not in New York City. That report pointed out that, despite that high total price,…

Related legislation passing, dying as big showdown over construction defects looms

In the past five days, the same Colorado Senate committee passed a bill making it tougher for owners of single-family homes to file construction-defects lawsuits and killed a bill that would have increased funding for affordable housing in Colorado.

But key supporters of the major construction-defects bill of the session — the one scheduled that will attempt to revive the moribund condominium industry in the metro Denver area and that is scheduled for its first hearing on Wednesday — say the…

FAA approves industrial use of Berkeley company's drones

In the latest move indicating the intense interest in using drones for industrial purposes, the Federal Aviation Administration has approved the use of Berkeley-based 3D Robotics’ drones by railroad giant BNSF and a California company that visually documents large construction sites.

“Big stuff,” proclaimed 3D Robotics CEO Chris Anderson, former editor of Wired Magazine, in a blog post disclosing the FAA’s decision.

The news came at the same time that 3D Robotics, the San Francisco Bay Area’s largest…

Momentum building for stricter California drought-related water restrictions

California Gov. Jerry Brown started things off more than a year ago, declaring a drought-related state of emergency in January 2014. Jay Inslee, Washington state’s governor late last week made a similar move, declaring a drought emergency in three regions of that state, including prime wine grape- and apple-growing regions.

And now California’s State Water Resources Control Board “is poised to get even tougher on water conservation as California now seems assured of a fourth year of drought,” the…

Hawaii self storage industry seeing record-high revenue, occupancy rates

Maybe the kids have gone off to college, or the business is in need of extra warehouse space; either way, many Hawaii residents are renting extra storage space, according to StorQuest, which operates 100 properties across the U.S. including four on Oahu.

StorQuest reports that it has seen record-high revenue and occupancy levels across the country and in Hawaii.

“I find it to be the perfect solution,” Kuuipo Lorenzo told PBN, who uses Hawaii Self Storage in Kaimuki. “There is not enough space in…