Build up or increase density — those are the options for San Diego real estate professionals who are trying to figure out how to accommodate a growing population with land that’s about 95 percent built.

There is still demand for design services in the West, but it moved at a slower pace in April, according to the American Institute of Architects' Architecture Billings Index released Wednesday.

(Bloomberg) — Desarrolladora Homex SAB, Mexico's biggest homebuilder by sales, said credit-rating downgrades and lawsuits from Barclays Plc and Credit Suisse Group AG over derivatives contracts have “arguably” put the company in default on peso-denominated bonds.

Construction crews moved traffic lanes on Harbor Drive approximately 60 feet to the east between the Navy and B Street piers on Monday, as progress continues on the North Embarcadero Visionary Plan Phase 1 project.

The year-to-date value of residential building permits for the region has finally outpaced the activity seen this deep into 2012, following the trend of more positive news for homebuilders seen each month since January’s steep decline.

(AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown has issued an executive order he says will help California's agriculture industry by streamlining the approval process for water transfers in the state.

Members of the San Diego State University chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association are transforming a parking structure in Chula Vista into a leaner, more energy-efficient building — in theory, anyway.

(Bloomberg) — The public school district in San Bernardino plans to sell $152 million in bonds for repairs and improvements this week, its first issue since the separate city government filed for bankruptcy last year.

Last week we discussed the major differences between the financial management of an HOA versus that of a traditional rental community. One difference is that an apartment community will fund its major repairs from its annual budget or via other funding arranged by the property owner. An HOA, on the other hand, is required to set aside "reserve funds" for the repair and replacement of major common area components.

Hawthorne Cat, the authorized Caterpillar dealer for construction equipment and engines in San Diego, is preparing to get dirty for its "Get In, Get Real" demo day event.

The construction front is light this week at municipalities, with few upcoming projects.

Construction employment jumped by 700 workers in the county from a year ago, but there was no change from March to April, according data released from the California Development Department on Friday.

San Diego's business events calendar is light this week.

(AP) — Highway workers have unearthed artifacts used by a Native American tribe as part of a paving project along Highway 101 north of Novato.

Many public and private redevelopment projects have been halted because of the downward economy and recent elimination of California redevelopment agencies.

Building permits in the city of San Diego increased 87 percent in the first quarter of 2013 from the first quarter of last year, according to RealtyTrac.

The face of the post-Great Recession construction industry was given a little shape recently, as industry executives from different sectors met with a major facilitator of public works contracts at The Daily Transcript’s second Construction Day event.

When it opens in July, Pier South will join the Hotel del Coronado as the second of only two hotels in San Diego built on the beach.

Lakeside will soon have its own skate park, a 16,500-square-foot project with a budget of $600,000 that is open for bidding until May 23, and expected to be completed in early 2014.

Located in the East Village on the Park-to-Bay promenade, the new Central Library designed by Rob Wellington Quigley, FAIA/Tucker Sadler Architects, symbolically unites the regional architecture of the past to the architecture of the present in a commitment to the city’s future.