Category: News

Powers & Sons is nearing completion of Governor Park, a new three-story, 71,880 SF apartment community in southern Indiana. Located in Ellettsville, the housing is designated for low-income seniors and adults with special needs.

Apartments include 70 one-bedroom, one-bath units at 675 SF each and 20 two-bedroom, two-bath units at 857 SF each. Some units are ADA compliant, with others adaptable for residents with mobility challenges.

Two wings connect to a central common with fitness center, community room, laundry, and business/computer center. Surface parking accommodates 100 vehicles.

Although not a LEED project, the development utilizes energy-efficient appliances and meets other green building requirements, including above-average insulation in the roof and walls.

COVID-Related Delays and Price Increases
Senior Project Manager Russell Lewis says preconstruction planning focused on value engineering to keep the project within budget.

“The original budget and design, completed before COVID caused price increases and supply chain challenges, called for exterior balconies and a cost-prohibitive central heating and cooling system. By recommending alternatives and design modifications, we reduced costs substantially and brought the project within budget,” Lewis notes.

While there were significant material delays, the Powers team worked around them.

“Lumber availability was a serious challenge with a delay of about 45 days. Delivery of roofing material from the manufacturer was also delayed. When framing was complete, we installed a temporary roof to shield the interior from water infiltration, which kept work moving until permanent roofing materials were available,” says Lewis.

Creative Solutions Kept the Project on Track
Other creative solutions were implemented to make progress.

“We normally build apartment buildings one floor at a time in sequence. Because of material shortages, we took a different approach. In analyzing the structural design, a central firewall provided a natural demarcation point. To avoid having to shut the job down until supplies arrived, we proposed working in halves. The owner approved, so we built the right side first then the left side. This enabled us do the rough-ins sooner and kept us from losing more time.”

Site work included removal of existing infrastructure on the property, which was a former mobile home park. An underground storm water detention system to collect run-off and release it slowly was installed.

Although not a requirement, local Monroe County subcontractors were utilized when possible. Lewis says developing smaller scopes of work for local firms whose companies are based in Southern Indiana also kept costs down. Powers & Sons has managed over 30 subcontractors, not including material suppliers, for the project.

Powers & Sons Indianapolis once again joined Citizens Energy Group (CEG) as a partner company in their annual Sharing the Dream program to benefit Indy Parks & Recreation.

This year’s effort, led by Senior Project Manager Keith Shanklin and Project Manager Rob Pinney, included Curtis Alexander, Jeff Davis, Brad Holland, Brent Klemme, and Matt Robinson.

Shanklin said Powers & Sons donated materials and labor to improve Watkins Park Community Center, an inner-city facility located at 2360 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Street in Indianapolis. The park’s family center was originally built in 1939. Over the years, it has hosted weddings, family reunions, civic meetings, and other gatherings.

“The goal was to get this community resource back to its usable and functional state,” Shanklin explains. “Our task focused on removing the existing ceiling and installing a modern new grid system with tiles throughout.” Matt Robinson, project engineer, notes conditions were poor. “Our team installed over 65 boxes of ceiling tiles. This minor improvement made a big difference.”

Shanklin also played a key role in a Sharing the Dream project for the city’s Frederick Douglass Park Centennial Celebration in 2021.

The 43-acre park opened in 1921 to serve the Martindale neighborhood’s African American community. In 1926, its historic golf course opened as the nation’s only course named for an African American. Powers & Sons renovated and updated the golf course club house, with the team installing new ceilings, lighting, and carpets and adding fresh paint throughout.

Many nonprofit programs that serve inner-city residents continue to struggle with obtaining the resources they need to serve local adults and youth. Shanklin says Indy Parks & Recreation facilities are vital for members of the minority community, especially children. “Kids need safe spaces where they can spend time outdoors and participate in athletic, educational, and other programs.”

Supporting programs that serve local youth is a core Powers & Sons value that has long been a focus for charitable and service activities.

As a new year dawns, it is a good time to reflect on what we achieved in 2021.

Despite the challenges of COVID-19 and its variants, supply chain delays, rising prices, and related distractions, Powers & Sons Construction is looking ahead to a bright 2022.

Preconstruction planning for 2022-23 is well underway, with ground broken and work started on a number of exciting projects.

In the spirit of the season, Powers & Sons Indianapolis is adopting a family from the Edna Martin Christian Center. The mother is a survivor of a workplace shooting that happened earlier this year. The Indy office is also making charitable contributions to One Simple Wish, a nonprofit organization that serves children in the foster care system impacted by abuse, neglect, and trauma.

Powers & Sons Northwest Indiana and Chicago participated in a 20th Ward Holiday Giveaway Event in which grocery gift cards worth $50 and fresh produce were distributed to local residents. Powers & Sons is one of several businesses and nonprofit organizations, including Fresh Start Foods in Chicago, who joined forces to help provide food for neighbors on the south side of the city.

We wish you a joyous holiday season and a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2022. Let us celebrate our blessings, cherish our friends and loved ones, and take care of each other.

This week, Vice President Kelly Powers was named to Crain’s Chicago Business 2021 Notable Black Leaders & Executives list. Powers leads multimillion-dollar new business initiatives and shares key management responsibilities for general contracting and construction operations in Chicago and Northwest Indiana.

The honorees work tirelessly to lift their communities. They lead initiatives and programs that improve best practices in recruiting, hiring, and retaining diverse talent. They boost the next generation through service focused on helping youth succeed.

With broad experience, Kelly Powers co-leads the Lakeside Alliance’s Leadership Community & Citizenship Work Groups which ensures the JV brings transformative, sustainable change to Chicago and the industry.

In this role, her responsibilities include maximizing equitable and inclusive contracting opportunities for small businesses. She strengthens the apprenticeship pipeline through partnerships with groups like Chicago Women in Trades.

Active in community, business, and civic circles, Kelly Powers is a 2021 graduate of Leadership Greater Chicago’s Class of LGC Fellows. She is a trustee for the Chicago Architecture Center and a board member for the Lincoln Park Zoo.

Find the full 2021 Notable Black Leaders & Executives list at chicagobusiness.com.

 

Powers & Sons had a great 2021 serving client Baron Waller. To date, we have built four Chicago Culver’s restaurants for Waller with the most recent being Culver’s Pullman Park and Culver’s Ravenswood. Previous projects include Culver’s Joliet and Culver’s Bronzeville.

Culver’s Pullman
Located near the Pullman National Monument, Waller’s 4,300 SF restaurant on South Doty Avenue has created 70 jobs. With outdoor patio seating, inside seats for over 120 diners, and drive-through ordering, it is the first new casual sit-down restaurant in Pullman in 30 years.

It was funded in part by a grant from the City of Chicago Neighborhood Opportunity Fund, Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives, and New Markets Tax Credit equity.

The investment brings much-needed food and beverage options to the area, which has seen investment by new businesses including an Amazon fulfillment center, Whole Food Midwest Distribution Center, and other retail shops and businesses.

Culver’s Ravenswood
Waller’s new 100-seat restaurant on West Montrose features the brand’s first pedestrian friendly design. Located near a CTA Brown Line stop, the restaurant has a walk-up ordering and take-out window with inside seating for 100. It employs about 50 people.

With six restaurants, Waller is the franchise’s largest minority owner. Chicago’s ABC 7 news covered the opening, which was attended by civic leaders. Waller’s two sons are among the Ravenswood employees, making it a true family-owned business success story.

 

 

Powers & Sons is a leader in delivering large public Construction Manager as constructor (CMc) projects, including those for K-12 and higher education clients.

This year, we partnered with MSD Lawrence Township for an improvement program at several properties:

1. Sunnyside Elementary School
2. Winding Ridge Elementary School
3. Winding Ridge Early Learning Center
4. Amy Beverland Early Learning Center
5. Mary Castle Early Learning Center

Currently, Thalmann is putting finishing touches on the new construction of a 42,500 SF transportation building to open in early 2022.

Strategies for Success
Planning and executing detailed construction schedules with multiple phases and good communication are among Powers & Sons’ keys to success, Thalmann reports.

“In Lawrence Township, each of the schools was open and occupied, so temporary walls, fencing, and other barriers isolated work areas. The district’s COVID-related protocols were followed. Educators and students were able to go about their daily routines outside construction zones,” he explains.

 

Team Effort is Required
A collaborative, cohesive management team with shared goals and objectives is the primary goal.

“Because we assign PMs, PEs, and site superintendents to proactively identify issues during daily walk-throughs, we can document, photograph, track, and resolve above- and below-ceiling concerns throughout the process. Any issues are immediately communicated to subcontractors and tracked to ensure concerns are resolved. When we walk a site for the final time with architects, city inspectors, fire marshals, and owners we want a zero-item punch list,” Thalmann adds.

Thalmann credits a strong team effort from Project Manager Emily Lucas, Superintendents Don Smith, Shawn Hernson, Brent Klemme, and Brad Holland, and Project Engineers Kayden Rivers, Jose Valdez, and Alivia Naus for making the Lawrence projects successful.

Estimating and pre-construction planning will begin in the first quarter of 2022 for a new Lawrence Township middle school improvement program. It includes facility upgrades and improvements to be completed at three local schools in 2023.