Recently, as gas prices continued to soar, the University of South Florida Polytechnic development office issued a remarkable appeal: "We want a gas-guzzler." Today, Suffolk Construction rode to the rescue, donating a 2005 Ford Expedition.

The site of the new USF Polytechnic campus, at I-4 and the Polk Parkway, is currently an undeveloped piece of land, accessible only by rugged SUV. USF Polytechnic CEO Marshall Goodman has frequent occasion to take potential donors, public officials, and USFP constituents on tours of the property, but transportation is an issue. As planning and eventually construction progresses, those trips will become more frequent. Add the costs of renting vehicles, and the trips become expensive as well.

"Suffolk Construction is proud to be in a position where we can make a contribution to a new campus," said Michael Beaumier, Suffolk's VP of West Coast Operations in Florida. "With the USF Polytechnic staff of excellence that is leading the charge, we believe the dream will become a reality, and the Polytechnic campus will become not only an opportunity for the community, academic groups and new programs but also for the ultimate end users, the students."

Accepting the keys to the vehicle, Goodman said, "This gift obviously means a great deal to us. Right now we are very focused on the development of the new campus, and our partners at Suffolk have literally provided us with a way to get out there as often as we need to."

Founded in 1982, Suffolk Construction is a privately held general building contracting company that provides pre-construction, construction management, general contracting and design-build services nation-wide, with offices in Boston, Irvine, Calif.; Miami, Naples, Sarasota, and West Palm Beach, Fla. Construction projects include both new construction and renovations in the hospitality, education, residential, healthcare, assisted living, public work, entertainment, retail and commercial market sectors.