Thursday, March 30, 2006

Sounds hope to attract minority contractors with April training

Nashville SoundsThe Nashville Sounds issued the following press release announcing training beginning in April for minority and women contractors. The classes will be taught by Turner Universal, the construction manager for the new Nashville Sounds Baseball Stadium. This is the third year the course has been offered. Minority participation in the new stadium construction was part of the reason Turner Universal was selected for the project.

A reduced course materials fee is available to members of either the Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce or the Tennessee Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Turner Universal, the construction manager for the new Nashville Sounds Baseball Stadium, will offer training to minority and women owned contractors. This program has been designed to enhance the technical, administrative and managerial skills of minority and women businesses in order to make a profit and build a reputation for efficiently managing construction projects.

Individuals enrolled in the program gain insights and meaningful tools that help them target their business for quality and growth and develop new, strategic business relationships.

“Emerging businesses face many challenges,” said Shannon Hines, president of Turner Universal. “Our goal is to assist them in developing strategies for the specific issues faced in our industry.” Turner’s School of Construction Management has been offered in many cities around the country and was first introduced in 1969.

Vanderbilt University will host the six-week course beginning in April. During the past four years, Turner has partnered with Vanderbilt to increase minority- and women-owned business participation in Nashville’s construction projects.

“The Nashville Sounds indicated in their original request for proposal their commitment to minority utilization. Their support of this program will help to attract additional interested and active contractors,” Hines said.

“In addition to their experience constructing similar facilities, Turner Universal’s track record in the utilization and development of minority contractors was a key factor in the Nashville Sounds selecting Turner Universal for this project,” said Sounds general manager Glenn Yaeger. “Sponsorship of this program is an extension of our commitment to the community."

Interested contractors can contact Bob Grimes, Turner Universal’s manager of marketing, at (615) 231-6343, for registration and course information.

A PDF version of the registration brochure can be downloaded by clicking here.


The new stadium is scheduled to open in April, 2008.
As early as 2003, Mayor Purcell's office showed interest in minority participation in the construction of any new baseball stadium (story here), and the Metro Council withheld approval of the stadium earlier this year until Sounds management pledged to incorporate minorities in the construction process. A smaller, three-hour minority workshop was held at the Sounds' current stadium in January (story here).

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