As it struggles to keep its financial head above water, Standard Pacific Homes in recent weeks liquidated its real estate position in several markets. Its lots and home units have been scooped up by builders and developers whose purchases demonstrate there's still room for optimism in the worst of times.

Two years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the Gulf of Mexico, oil and gas companies have cleaned up just half the mess made by the storms, and the work is expected to continue until 2013, according to the federal Minerals Management Service (MMS). But a $750-million contract recently awarded by a group of platform owners to Harvey, La.-based Superior Energy Services signals that some companies are ready to finish the work.

The U.S. Dept. of Energy has awarded the $4-billion-plus management contract of its Savannah River Site (SRS) in Aiken, S.C., to a Fluor Corp.-led team instead of the 19-year incumbent, Washington Group International.

Traffic is moving again on Interstate 4 in Central Florida after a 70-vehicle pileup damaged the road bed necessitating emergency repairs.