Commercial Construction & Renovation

US hotel rooms under construction reached record levels of 215,000 in March and 220,000 in April while the industry suffered its worst downturn on record, STR reports. The pandemic will reverse the trend eventually, says STR’s Jan Freitag, but the …

Amazon, Costco, Walmart, Publix and Kroger are among the food retailers that have responded best to the pandemic, according to a survey of shoppers by market research firm Magid. The poll of more than 1,000 shoppers asked their opinions on …

Lululemon Athletica has reopened more than 150 global stores and is phasing in the reopenings based on lessons learned from its experience in getting stores in China back up and running. The plan calls for 200 more locations to reopen …

Starbucks will move more of its mall-based stores to units with drive-thru windows. The pandemic has sped plans to make the shift, he said, and the transition to drive-thru stores that was once scheduled to take up to five years …

Restaurants around the globe are figuring out how they’ll balance ambiance and safety when they’re allowed to start reopening their dining rooms, and many plan to make new uses of outdoor space. Read the CNBC story here

J.C. Penney plans to close 242 unproductive stores, or more than a quarter of its 846 locations, the century-old American retailer disclosed after filing for bankruptcy. Read the USA Today story here

The coronavirus pandemic has done little to delay multibillion-dollar commercial projects. See how contractors are keeping things on track while taking precautions to protect workers. Read the CP Executive story here

Denny’s Corp. has outlined a number of new practices aimed at health and safety as dining rooms reopen amid easing of coronavirus restrictions. Read the Nation’s Restaurant News story here

Restaurants have created grilling kits and other promotional packages to help families celebrate the unofficial start of summer. Options range from traditional cookout fare, such as the BBQ Burger Box from San Francisco’s Palette, to the upscale, including lobster roll …

Auntie Anne’s, Jamba Juice and Cinnabon parent Focus Brands had been working to move the concepts beyond the mall before the coronavirus outbreak, and the need has grown even more urgent amid the pandemic. The company has a fleet of …