Wisconsin Builder | Top Projects of 2005

Best foot forward

It happens every year.

About three weeks after we finish judging for our annual Top Projects issue of Wisconsin Builder, people call to see if their projects made the final list of 20 winners.

They explain what made the projects so unique, how the construction and design teams overcame monumental challenges, and how rare an opportunity it was to work on those particular jobs.

I give the callers a general sense of how their projects fared in the judging process, and whether they were in the running to make the Top Projects list. It’s never easy to explain to someone how a project that clearly meant so much to them didn’t win the honor.

The fact is Wisconsin Builder receives more than 100 entries for Top Projects nearly every year, and the majority of those jobs deserve recognition. The construction industry is filled with busy people, and most of them wouldn’t take the time to fill out the entry form, take the pictures and write the project narratives if they didn’t think their work was worthy.

The Top Projects judges approach every entry with that basic fact in mind. Judging isn’t about whittling away the bad ones; it’s about finding the projects that demand recognition.

And this year’s list of Top Projects does just that. Starting on page 23, you’ll see our equivalent of a construction highlight reel from 2005. These jobs are instant classics, showcasing teamwork, vision, ingenuity and the sparkling results of trained hands and keen eyes at their best.

You’ll read about high-profile projects — like Camp Randall and the Milwaukee Public Market — that excelled under the bright lights of public scrutiny. And you’ll discover some hidden nuggets, such as Water Tower View and the Susan Schuster Pet Resource Center.

Our annual Top Projects issue means a lot to The Daily Reporter Publishing Co.

It’s the year’s biggest Wisconsin Builder, with a page count coming in at about three times that of a normal issue. It’s thick and heavy, and when you pick it up, you know you’re holding something substantial.

It is, to a certain extent, our Top Project of the year. But for all the work we put into it, and all the pride we feel when it finally comes off the presses, we know that our Top Project wouldn’t mean much without yours.