Your Honor

Callen Construction Inc., Muskego, won four awards in the Milwaukee Chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry's Remodeler of the Year Awards. The company won Silver Awards for Residential Kitchen $60,000-$100,000, Residential Bath $15,000-$30,000 and Residential Bath $30,000-$60,000. The company won a Bronze Award for Residential Interior Under $100,000. KD Poolscapes, Franksville, won the 2005 Regional Contractor of the Year Award from NARI's national chapter. … Three library renovation projects designed by The Durrant Group Inc., Hartland, recently won industry awards. The Southwest Library in Kenosha won the Best of Category Award in the Additions/Renovations Category from the Wisconsin Chapter of the International Masonry Institute. It also won the Business Beautification Award from the Kenosha Area Chamber of Commerce. The Fond du Lac Public Library and the Elisha D. Smith Public Library in Menasha both won a Build Wisconsin Award from the Associated General Contractors of America. … The Rigging and Erection Division of J.P. Cullen and Sons Inc., Janesville, was a member of the construction team headed by Opus North Corp., Milwaukee, that won an Award of Merit for 2004 in higher education/research from Midwest Construction magazine for the team's work on the John P. Raynor S.J. Library at Marquette University in Milwaukee. Cullen also won a Best Institutional Building/Government Award from Masonry Construction magazine for the com-pany's work on the Mississippi River National Education & Conference Center in Dubuque, Iowa. … The Broan-Nutone Group, Hartford; Highland Building Consulting, Green Bay; Veridian Homes, Madison; Thompson Homes & Construction Inc., Green Bay; and Richard Stone, the northwestern Wisconsin regional coordinator for ENERGY STAR Homes, won the 2005 Governor's Award for their contributions to energy-efficient home building and their commitment to the public good. … Staab Construction Corp., Marshfield, and Market & Johnson Inc., Eau Claire, won General Contractor of the Year Awards from the Associated General Contractors of Wisconsin. … The Madison Area Builders Association recently honored several members. Rob Crothers of Voyager Builders Inc., Sun Prairie, won the MABA Builder of the Year and Green Built Supporter of the Year awards. Mike Vilstrup of United Building Centers, Madison, won the MABA Associate of the Year Award. Doug Widish of Gerhard's First Supply Showroom, Madison, won the MABA New Member of the Year Award. Pam Stokes of Acker Floor to Ceiling, Fitchburg, and Pete Horton of Sierra Concepts LLC, Madison, won President's Awards for their contributions to the association. … Riley Construction Co. Inc., Kenosha, won a Safety Award from the AGC of Wisconsin for the company's work maintaining a lost-time incident rate that is 25 percent less than the national average. Riley has won the award every year since 1998. … Robert Wing of Scott Construction Inc., Lake Delton, won the 2004 Wes Meilahn Award from the Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin for his service to the association. … South Star Trucking Inc., Milwaukee, won the Trailblazer Award from the Initiative for a Competitive Milwaukee for the company's work bringing jobs and economic revitalization to Milwaukee's central city. … Plunkett Raysich Architects LLP, Milwaukee, won several awards from the American Society of Interior Designers. The firm won a Bronze Award for New Partial or Complete Residential for its work on Gibraltar Town Homes in Fish Creek, a Bronze Award for Education/Institutional for its work on the Hamilton Fine Arts Center/Hamilton School District in Sussex, a Silver Award for Office/Corporate Over 25,000 Square Feet for its work on Waters at Park Place in Milwaukee and a Gold Award for Office/Corporate Over 25,000 Square Feet for its work on the Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Milwaukee.

Wrapped up

TechSkills has a little more elbowroom thanks to Inland Construction Inc., Milwaukee, and Welman Architects Inc., Waukesha. The general contractor and architect teamed up to construct a 5,600-square-foot computer training facility for TechSkills in a four-story office building on Executive Drive in Brookfield. The project, which features 120 feet of glass, includes five classrooms/laboratories, four testing rooms, a mentor station and an administration office. Inland started work in mid-November and reached completion in early January.

On the horizon

Consulting engineer Baxter & Woodman Inc., Burlington, is working with the Elkhorn City Utility on an estimated $3.8 million water-treatment plant expansion and well-drilling project in the city. … Heritage Christian School, West Allis, is planning an estimated $2.3 million gym and classroom addition. … Milwaukee Area Technical College is exploring plans to build a new dorm for students at its Milwaukee campus. … The Kenosha County Board of Supervisors is considering construction of a new sheriff's substation in Bristol. … Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church, Wauwatosa, is seeking approvals to build a new worship facility on Cleveland Avenue in New Berlin. … Toki and Associates Inc., in association with Intelligent Network Solutions, Milwaukee, will provide consultant services for a $3.3 million telecommunications-cable installation project in 27 buildings on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. … The Kubala Washatko Architects Inc., Cedarburg, has signed on as a consultant for the site development and master planning of the Villager Mall on South Park Street in Madison. … Venture Architects, Milwaukee, is working with the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors on an expansion and improvement plan for the Jefferson County Courthouse in Jefferson. … Ayres Associates Inc., Madison, is helping the town of Madison implement and manage a brownfield redevelopment project. … Somerville Inc., Green Bay, is working with the De Pere Unified School District to assess the need for facility expansions in the district and, if necessary, carry out the costing, designing, bidding and construction phases for any expansion work. … Plunkett Raysich Architects, Milwaukee, has signed on to provide architectural services for a remodel and expansion of the Lakeland School of Walworth County or construction of a new school. … Maranatha Baptist Bible College, Watertown, is moving forward with plans to construct a new three-story women's dorm on its campus. … YMCA of Racine is raising funds for a new YMCA facility on Fancher Road in Mount Pleasant. … WillowTree Development, Milwaukee, is working toward a summer construction start on the estimated $19 million River Ridge Plaza in Pewaukee. … The Archdiocese of Milwaukee is studying the feasibility of constructing a new Catholic high school in Washington County. … Mead & Hunt Inc., Madison, has signed on to provide consultant services for an improvement project at the Chippewa Valley Regional Airport in Eau Claire. … Uihlein Wilson Architects Inc., Milwaukee, is working toward a spring construction start on a new church for Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in Pewaukee. … Dorschner/Associates, Madison, will provide architect/engineer services for a student learning center addition at UW-Madison's Engineering Hall. … Engineer Donohue & Associates Inc., Sheboygan, is moving forward with an estimated $2.7 million sewer and water-main extension project to Sanger Powers Correctional Center in Oneida. … Strang Inc., Madison, is working toward the bidding phase for a $1.3 million improvement project at Lowell Hall for the University of Wisconsin Extension. … The Wilson Firm Ltd., Milwaukee, has won state approval for a $1.7 million multipurpose and physical education building at the Southern Oaks Girls School in Union Grove.

Dotted Line

Oscar J. Boldt Construction Co., Appleton, won a $7 million contract to build the Canal Street parking structure in Neenah. … Rasch Construction & Engineering Inc., Kenosha, landed a $1.2 million general-work contract to expand and remodel Cottage 17 for an activities center at the Wisconsin Veterans Home in Union Grove. Miron Construction Co. Inc., Neenah, won a $1.2 million general-work contract to remodel the Veterans Home's Cottage 17 for a cook/chill food-service facility. Miron also won a $5.8 million contract to construct a new community center for the Waunakee Village Center in Waunakee. … CG Schmidt Inc., Milwaukee, was selected to build a 1,250-stall parking structure for Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. … Edgerton Contractors Inc., Oak Creek, won a $1.1 million contract to construct roof repairs at the Howard Avenue Water Purification Plant in Milwaukee. … Dorner Inc., Luxemburg, landed a $1.3 million contract and a $1.4 million contract to construct street and utility work in Allouez. Dorner also won a $1.2 million contract to construct the Kiwanis Park Drive sanitary-sewer relay in Sheboygan. … PTS Contractors Inc., Green Bay, won a $1.8 million contract to construct interceptors, sewers and water mains in De Pere. … MSI General Corp., Oconomowoc, will design and build a 66,498-square-foot Pick'n Save at the Market Place at Pabst Farms in Oconomowoc. … Market & Johnson Inc., Eau Claire, won a $1.6 million contract to construct school improvements for the Luck School District in Luck. … Payne & Dolan Inc., Waukesha, landed a $2.1 million contract to construct sewer and street improvements in Greenfield. … Grunau Company Inc., Oak Creek, won the contract to complete the design/build and installation of the HVAC system for the new GE Healthcare building in Wauwatosa.

Giving Back

County Materials Corp., Marathon, donated 12 pallets of various styles of concrete block to the Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin's three-year bricklaying apprenticeship program at Mid-State Technical College in Wisconsin Rapids.

By Design

The city of Madison is getting ready to back up its green talk. The city has teamed up with Ayres Associates, Eau Claire and Madison, to create a sustainable design for Madison's new engineering services building on Emil Street. The two-story, 18,000-square-foot project, which is a mix of new construction and remodeling work, will feature natural daylighting, materials reconstructed from recycled products and a green roof with plantings to absorb rain. The new building, with an estimated construction cost of $2 million, will provide space for engineering, maintenance, inspection, surveying and mapping staff. Ayres expects to start construction in May and reach completion in January. Bids for the project should hit the streets in April.

Hot Spot

Mandel Group Inc. is getting right to the heart of the matter with its RiverCrest condominium development on Milwaukee's east side. The Milwaukee developer chose Commerce Street at the intersection of North and Humboldt avenues for its project because it's close to downtown, close to many entertainment areas and a quick ride down North from the Columbia St. Mary's Milwaukee campus. Mandel, which is working with The Jansen Group Inc., Milwaukee, and Arquitectura Inc., Milwaukee, is nearing completion of the first two buildings of the six-building first phase. The first phase, which should reach completion around the end of 2006, will feature 40 townhouse condos with attached two-car garages and private entries. The second phase, which should include about 35 condos in one or two buildings, will go under design this year with construction starting in 2006. The development is still open for buyers, and the second phase should offer opportunities for subcontractors.

Peer Review

BIRD'S-EYE VIEW

Badding has the best seat in the house

“I can swing with the best of them. I know that.” Harry Badding

Harry Badding never drinks on the job.

That's not to say he hasn't had plenty of opportunities. When Swede Omen put down three fingers of brandy and a beer at lunch, Badding would decline any offers. It didn't much matter to him if the site superintendent was nipping the bottle, but Badding had a rule.

"I'd tell him that if I had a beer, I'm going home," he said.

That's good news for hundreds, if not thousands, of construction workers all around Wisconsin. While they're swinging hammers, Badding is swinging 10,000 pounds over their heads from the cab of his tower crane.

Tower cranes hadn't yet poked through the Wisconsin skyline when Swede was taking his liquid lunches. Those were the waning days of the guide derrick. It was the mid-1960s, and Badding was working the M&I Bank project in Milwaukee for Bethlehem Steel on his first job as a member of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 139.

He had arrived on site ready to operate two air compressors. He wound up in a guide derrick shack built around an elaborate winch working off signals through a bell system to lift truckloads of structural steel he couldn't see. And the guy who trained him didn't exactly use a soft touch in his guidance.

"That guy was from the old school," Badding said. "He bellered and yelled, and, after work every night, it was a shot and a beer, a shot and a beer. After six of those, we'd go home."

Just as he sat in the shack of Wisconsin's last guide derrick, Badding sat in the cab of the state's first tower crane. It was a Hunzinger Construction Co. job on Milwaukee's east side, and Badding found himself going solo when it came to learning the intricacies of the new machine.

"The guy who put it up was from Ireland," he said. "He spoke French, German, some Italian and no English. The next day, I'm looking for this tech, and somebody told me he caught a plane out at 8 that morning. So I figured it out."

Just figuring it out is nothing new to Badding, who was born on a dairy farm in Prentice in 1945. When he wasn't farming, he was helping the family run its logging company.

When he was about 8 years old, he started bouncing around between Milwaukee, the Prentice farm and his brother's farm in North Dakota before finally setting his roots with the Operating Engineers.

It was a natural transition.

"I knew a friend of my brother's who was running a backhoe," Badding said. "I could run all the equipment. I was running bulldozers when I was 8 or 9 years old."

He's still running bulldozers, endloaders, backhoes, road graders, hydraulic cranes or crawler cranes when he's not sitting in the cab of a tower crane. He guesses he's worked for 100 companies around Wisconsin in the last four decades.

"I've been around everything they use a crane for," he said. "Trust me, everybody in the state knows me from running tower cranes."

And almost every tower crane operator in the state learned from Badding. He said he's trained 12 of about 20 operators in Wisconsin, and his students most likely trained the rest.

"They're unique pieces of equipment, and not everybody can run them," he said. "It's all hand-eye coordination, and every one is different.

"Especially when you're pouring concrete. You're swinging 10,000 pounds, and you get a rhythm down, just seeing how fast you can do it."

For Badding, the job is no longer about sitting 150 feet to 800 feet above a work site, looking through a window between his feet while he maneuvers thousands of pounds. For Badding, it's about fine-tuning a career's worth of experience.

"It's just like playing piano or playing guitar; it's how good can you get," he said. "I can swing with the best of them. I know that."

- Chris Thompson

Best of the Web

Buildings magazine and Archi-Tech magazine feature a companion Web site at www.buildings.com. The site contains full articles of interest to anyone active in the construction industry. The sheer volume of content on this site is amazing, with topics ranging from green building to experts' opinions on hospital construction.

- Rick Benedict

Off the Clock

A DOG'S LIFE

Houston stretches for the finish line during a lure-coursing event in Duluth.

Liesta wasn't the prettiest bitch in the show.

But she had presence. When she walked into the ring, she owned it. She was already the Winner's Bitch, but she wanted more. And this was her chance. She was going for one of the top prizes. She was in the group ring, facing off against the best of the best. Was a little respect, a little adulation, too much to ask?

"She pooped in group," said Ralph Jackson Jr. "Suffice it to say, she didn't win."

And so goes the life of a dog on the show circuit. One minute you're Best of Breed, and the next you're just another dog looking for some privacy.

But Jackson, who is an architect and past president of Flad & Associates Inc., Madison, is quick to shoulder the blame for Liesta's mishap. He was, after all, the Gordon setter's kennel boy that day.

A litter of 7-week-old whippets shows a rare instance of calm. Houston (second from left) still lives with Ralph Jackson Jr. and his wife.

"We were raw and inexperienced," he said. "We were so excited that I forgot to take her out before she went into the group ring."

Jackson and his wife, Marie, have come a long way since they bought their first Gordon setter in about 1980. The terms of that purchase required the Jacksons to show their dog, so Marie took lessons and started showing.

"To this day, my wife shows," Jackson said. "I don't enjoy it. We've gone to shows all over the country, and I enjoy going and watching my wife show. I am the kennel boy."

Showing dogs evolved into breeding, so the Jacksons set up McAllister Kennel. They bred several bench champions and sold a puppy that grew into the No. 4 Gordon setter in the country. But showing Gordons isn't easy. It used to take Marie five to eight hours just to groom a dog.

So the Jacksons set out to find a new breed. That's when they discovered whippets, which are mid-sized, greyhound-type dogs. And whippets led Jackson to racing.
"We short-track race them," he said. "They'll go 200 yards in 12 to 13 seconds. They love it. There's no betting. It's just for fun."

Houston clears a hurdle in an agility competition while Ralph Jackson Jr. provides direction.

Jackson also runs his whippets through lure coursing in a large field where the dogs chase a lure and get graded by a team of judges. But Jackson's favorite is the agility competition, where judges award dogs for their proficiency crossing teeter-totters, jumping through tires, racing through tunnels and chutes and weaving between poles.

"That's my thing," he said.

Back at the kennel, the Jacksons keep a Gordon setter named McAllister's Top Gun and two whippets, named McAllister's Mission Control (Houston) and Ch. Merci Isle McAllister's Moxie, JS, TDIA, CGC. But Jackson said it's a safe bet that more whippets will be on the way.

"Whippets are somewhat like potato chips," he said. "You can't have just one."

- Chris Thompson

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