 |
 |  |
 | ||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 | ||||||||||||
On the horizon
Developer Brian Shecterle, Brookfield, wants to purchase the Crestwood Bakery property on 108th Street in West Allis and turn it into an estimated $8 million retail development. … Birschbach & Associates Ltd., Kimberly, is designing an estimated $1.2 million nature center addition to the headquarters of the Ellwood H. May Environmental Park in Sheboygan. … Planning Design Build Inc., Madison, is working with L&P Enterprises LLC, Milwaukee, on plans for an estimated $9 million Steinhafels Furniture Super Store on Highway 41-45 in Menomonee Falls. … Developer Gorman & Co. Inc., Madison, is proposing an estimated $12 million retail and housing development on a vacant industrial site on North Dr. Martin Luther King Drive in Milwaukee. … The Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians is planning a casino, convention center, hotel and restaurant on 93 acres in Shullsburg. … The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is planning an improvement project for Highway 83 from the Illinois state line north to Salem. … Central Wisconsin Engineers & Architects Inc., Weston, is designing an estimated $1 million transit center for the Wausau Area Transit System in Wausau. … Menomonee Falls Inn, Menomonee Falls, is planning the estimated $9.3 million construction of a four-story Marriott Fairfield Inn & Suites at the corner of Main Street and Fond du Lac Avenue in Menomonee Falls. … Plunkett Raysich Architects, Milwaukee, is working on plans for a new grade school connected to Queen of Apostles Church on Capitol Drive in Pewaukee. … The Zimmerman Design Group, Wauwatosa, has signed on with the city of Sheboygan to develop plans for an estimated $10.8 million police station on South 14th Street in the city. Zimmerman also is working with the village of Pewaukee on plans to expand and reuse the Barbara Sanborn Library for a new village hall and police station. … Angus-Young Associates Inc., Janesville, is designing an estimated $1.8 million dairy center replacement project at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. … Capitol Engineering Inc., Madison, is designing an estimated $1.2 million upgrade of the electrical power distribution system at the Oakhill Correctional Facility in Oregon. … The city of New Berlin is planning for the construction of an estimated $1.6 million fire station. … Strand Associates Inc., Madison, is working with the village of Fontana on plans for an estimated $1.8 million lift station.
Your honorVinton Construction Co., Manitowoc, won the Best Concrete Paving Project in the United States Award (municipal streets and intersections with less than 30,000 square yards placed) from the American Concrete Pavement Association for the company's work on the 2003 Main Street reconstruction and streetscape project in Little Chute. … Al Eckhart, owner of Woodhaven Homes & Realty Inc., Pewaukee, won the 2004 Builder of the Year Award from the Metropolitan Builders Association for his work with the association and his success with Parade of Homes models. Rob Bultman of McNally, Maloney & Peterson SC, Milwaukee, won the 2004 Associate of the Year Award from the MBA for his service on the association's boards and committees. … Chris Warren, safety director for Tweet/Garot Mechanical Inc., Green Bay, won the Volunteer of the Year Award from the Mechanical Contractors Association of North Central Wisconsin for his help developing the MCA's Substance Abuse Testing Program in the mechanical and sheet metal industries. … Hoffman Construction Co., Black River Falls, won the Prime Contractor of the Year Award from the U.S. Department of Transportation for the company's work promoting the growth of disadvantaged businesses in Wisconsin's transportation construction industry. … Paul Kraemer of The Starr Group, Greenfield; Pamela Molenda of Weather-Tek Design Center, Brookfield; David Pekel of Pekel Construction & Remodeling, Wauwatosa; Mike Ellery of S.J. Janis Co., Wauwatosa; and Tom Hagner of Better Building by Weather-Seal, Racine, won the Presidents Award from the Milwaukee Chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry for their commitment to the community, education and the association's goals. In memoriam
Peer ReviewMEMORY LANEPullara looks back on a satisfying career
Tony Pullara walked through the front door of J.H. Findorff & Son Inc. in 1955, a teen-ager just a year out of high school and ready to work. He walked away from the Madison contractor 46 years later, a 65-year-old project superintendent on his way to retirement. "I actually grew up
and grew old with this company," he said. "When you're talking 40-plus
years, it wasn't in slow motion, that's for sure. The years went by really fast. The years might have passed by in a blink, but Pullara, 69, made the most of his time. He got married, had two sons, tried his hand at retail hardware for a couple years before returning to Findorff and played a role in more construction projects than he can count. "It was a long, tough career," he said. "It's a tough racket, really. I drive by now and see these guys working in the cold and think, 'How in the hell did we do it in my day?' "But it's gratifying if you stick with it. It floors me sometimes to think of all the buildings we built." He might look back on his accomplishments with some wonder, but there was never any mystery when it came to Pullara's career choice. He was born and raised in Madison and grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood just a few blocks from Findorff's headquarters. "That must have been how I got the feeling that I was destined to be a worker," he said. He signed up with the local union, and, a year later, he was a carpenter apprentice for Findorff. At the time, Findorff was putting up about two houses a day, and before his four-year apprenticeship was up, Pullara was leading some of the carpenter crews. "Then I started running projects," he said. "We were building gas stations like crazy on every corner of the city." From there, Pullara became first a foreman, starting with the Hill Farms State Office Building in Madison and continuing with the Camp Randall project in the late '60s and early '70s, and then a superintendent. "Oscar Mayer had an eight-story addition, and that was my first job as a superintendent," he said. "From Oscar Mayer on, it was all projects in the $2 million to $5 million range. Then I moved on to bigger projects." Pullara's work as a superintendent focused on hospital projects, and it was during a University of Wisconsin Hospital job that Pullara decided it was time to walk away. "I was ready,"
he said. "It was a tough schedule on that last project. We were going into
the remodeling phase, and I was 65 and thought it was a good time to get out." "Some of the buildings we put up, it's unbelievable," he said. "I just didn't realize it. We were so busy putting the jobs together. I drive by buildings now, and if I've got my grandkids in the car, I say, 'I built that building.' "It was so much more than what I'm saying. It would be hard to explain everything." But he doesn't have trouble explaining his satisfaction with a career well spent. "I made a good living and a good living for my family," he said. "I'm very proud of what I've done. I'm very proud to have worked for this company. There are times when I think, 'Should I go back and do that?' No. I'm enjoying this retirement too much." - Chris Thompson Off the clock
What a diveGert Grohmann is sitting at the back of a boat floating on the icy waters of upper Lake Superior in Ontario. He's about to roll off the boat and plunge 260 feet to explore a luxury yacht that met its fate on Superior's shoals in 1911. It's a dangerous dive, one that less than 1 percent of scuba divers can pull off, because of the technical training required and the fact that it will allow for an overhead environment, which means the divers have gone so deep that there's no access to the surface if something goes wrong. Grohmann looks over to one of his fellow divers, who takes a pull off his tank and talks to Grohmann in a Donald Duck voice. So much for taking things too seriously. "You have $3,000 to $4,000 worth of equipment, and you're all wearing 100 pounds to 150 pounds of equipment," said Grohmann, the associate safety and training director at the Associated General Contractors of Greater Milwaukee. "These are all serious-minded people who turn into kids breathing helium. It's all pretty surreal."
Besides providing comic relief, the helium in the tanks will help the divers return safely through the overhead environment to the surface by dispelling the nitrogen that tends to build up in the body when a diver goes to such depths. If too much nitrogen builds up, Grohmann said, the divers tend to get giddy as they go deeper and narcosis sets in. That's a bad kind of giddy. The good kind appears when Grohmann talks about his love of scuba diving. "One of the biggest things is I feel extremely lucky because I don't know a lot of people who have the ability to really pursue their passions," he said. "I've been really blessed with the ability to do the things I've been doing." Grohmann's passionate pursuit of diving began in 1977, when, as a 12-year-old, he earned his first scuba diving certification. In the ensuing years, he did a lot of warm-water diving, and then, about 10 years ago, he turned his attention to cold water. That interest led him to the deeper, technical diving about six years ago.
"I did cave-diving training in northern Florida," Grohmann said. "I was going 2,000 feet into a cave. I started to enjoy things that are dramatically outside the mainstream." The cave diving was fun, but it was really a way for Grohmann to train for exploring shipwrecks, which is how he ended up on Lake Superior two years ago. Grohmann's diving also has taken him to the Philippines, Mexico, the Cayman Islands, southern California, the east coast of Africa and even St. Louis. "I've literally been around the world diving," he said. He also turned diving into a second career at home when he opened his scuba shop, Deep Blue Adventure, on Capitol Drive in Milwaukee a year and a half ago. His work at the shop, teaching scuba diving and his career with AGC don't give him a lot of down time, but Grohmann said it's all worth it. "All of the teaching I do with people in really stressful environments makes it easier to do my job at AGC," he said. "The whole variety of experiences makes you much more three-dimensional." - Chris Thompson
Dotted lineJanke General Contractors Inc., Athens, won a $1.3 million contract to convert a railroad trestle bridge crossing Little Lake Butte des Morts in Menasha into a bicycle and pedestrian trail. … Advance Construction Inc., Green Bay, will furnish and install HVAC and water heaters for various dwelling units in Douglas County after winning a $1.4 million contract for the work. … Bachmann Construction Co. Inc., Madison, landed a $1.5 million contract to remodel the Dodge County Sheriff Department in Juneau. … J.P. Cullen & Sons Inc., Janesville, won a $4.2 million general-work contract to renovate the north wing of Lapham Hall at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. J&H Heating & Air Conditioning Co., Port Washington, won a $1.9 million HVAC contract for the job. … Dorner Inc., Luxemburg, will construct utility and roadwork in Peshtigo after winning a $1.5 million contract for the job. … Lunda Construction Co., Black River Falls, secured a $5.1 million contract for repair work on the St. Croix River Lift Bridge in Stillwater, Minn. … J.F. Cook Co. Inc., Oak Creek, will restore the cast-iron windows at the Milwaukee County Historical Society in Milwaukee after winning a $1.3 million contract for the job. … Edgerton Contractors Inc., Oak Creek, won a $1.8 million contract to construct shoreline protections at South Shore Park in Milwaukee. … Pieper Power, Milwaukee, will construct milorganite facility improvements at the Jones Island Wastewater Treatment Plant in Milwaukee after winning a $3.3 million contract for the work. … C.D. Smith Construction Co., Fond du Lac, landed a $67.2 million general-work contract for construction of the Microbial Sciences Building and parking structure at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Hooper Corp., Madison, won a $5.2 million plumbing contract for the job. North American Mechanical Inc., De Forest, won a $12.4 million HVAC contract. Monona Plumbing & Fire Protection, Madison, won a $1.1 million fire-protection contract. Town & Country Electric Inc., Appleton, won an $11.2 million electrical contract for the UW-Madison project. … Van Straten Construction, Green Bay, secured a $1.4 million contract to construct a water-transmission main in Ashwaubenon. Ronet Construction Corp., Green Bay, won a $2.2 million contract to construct a separate water-transmission main in Ashwau-benon. … Woleske Construction Co. Inc., Green Bay, will construct the first phase of the River Shores utilities project in West Bend after winning a $1.1 million contract for the project. … Milwaukee General Construction Co. Inc., Milwaukee, landed a $1.7 million contract to reconstruct taxiways at General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee. … Langer Roofing & Sheet Metal Inc., Milwaukee, won a $1.7 million contract to replace the roof at Marshall High School in Milwaukee. … Pieper Electric Inc., Milwaukee, will construct an electrical-system upgrade and duct-bank expansion at General Mitchell International Airport after winning a $1.2 million contract for the work. … Altmeyer Electric Inc., Sheboygan, won a $1.1 million electrical contract for the Bayshore Mall redevelopment project in Glendale. | Story Index | Wisconsin Builder | DailyReporter.com | © 2005 Daily Reporter Publishing Co., All Rights Reserved.
| |||||||||||||||
Lawrence
W. Kitzinger, Germantown, died Dec. 11 of undisclosed causes. Kitzinger, 74,
was a member of Carpenters Local 264 in Pewaukee for 50 years. … Thomas
H. Bentley Jr., Mequon, died Dec. 11 of undisclosed causes. Bentley, 81, was
the fourth- generation owner of The Bentley Company, the 156-year-old general
contractor in Milwaukee. Bentley began his career with the company in 1942. …
Robert Sosinske, Brookfield, died Dec. 12 of an apparent heart attack.
Sosinske, 85, was the founder and president of Milwaukee Tractor and Equipment
Inc. … Kelly Ann Waite, Lake Geneva, died Dec. 11 of an asthma attack.
Waite, 40, worked at Arby Construction Inc., New Berlin. … James E.
Landon, Mesa, Ariz., died Dec. 11 of undisclosed causes. Landon, 81, was the
co-founder of J&J Electric Co., Milwaukee. … Joseph Hilar Flad,
Madison, died Dec. 26 of undisclosed causes. Flad, 82, spent his entire career
with Flad & Associates Inc., the Madison architectural firm founded by
his father. Flad, who retired from the firm in 1985, also served as president
of the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
It
all went so fast.
