construction · and selective brush cutting. “what makes us different is we go in ... back row,...

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The name Cut Antz Land Improve-ment is certainly different and memorable, and that’s what owners

Bart Homeyer and Brad and Billi Rue were aiming for when they started the company in Karnes City in March 2012. Billi and Bart are siblings who de-scend from several generations of Ho-meyer’s in the Karnes County area. Brad and Billi met in Colorado, where Brad is from a logging family. “My brother was doing brush cutting and one of his clients commented the skid steer and shear reminded him of an ant scurrying around,” Billi says. “We didn’t want our name to get lost, so that’s what we came up with. It has worked.

People may not know who we are or what we do, but the name is easy to re-call.” Primarily, the company provides fencing, as well as clearing the fence line and selective brush cutting. “What makes us different is we go in and help someone realize their image of what they want their property to look like,” Billi says. “We are able to go in and clear out a certain species of brush, rather than bulldozing the entire pasture.” According to Brad, that’s what differ-entiates Cut Antz from other fence com-panies. “We don’t do quick and cheap, which

Brad and Billi Rue with their crew dog, Abbi, and Bart Homeyer with his crew member, Clyde

David Evins found out a major truth about going into business for yourself early on after starting

Evins Glass Services in Corpus Christi in 1986. “I found out that the key to a success-ful business is your employees,” he says. “Hire right, train right and treat them right.” He had to learn that lesson fast. When he started, it was just him, an in-staller and soon after, someone to an-swer the phones - which kept ringing, turning the business into the multi-mil-lion dollar enterprise it is today. There are 46 employees now and Evins estimates the company will make

$4 million in sales this year. There are about 25 employees who have been with the company for 20 years or more. “We have the best – by far – employ-ees,” he says. After college, Evins tried his hand in the corporate world, but soon discarded his tie and the meetings for a more hands-on career. He says that kind of made him the black sheep of the family in that his father, John Evins, is a legend in the State Farm Insurance Company, consistently being ranked in the top 10 in insurance sales in the nation. “Corporate life just wasn’t for me,” David says. “My father sat down with me

Photos courtesy Eddie Seal

Following a devastating Category Four hurricane in 1919 that de-stroyed downtown, Corpus Christi

filled a block into the Corpus Christi Bay to construct a new sea wall that would protect the community from future di-sasters. Since that time, Shoreline Dr, a wide boulevard designed preliminarily for automobiles that has provided limit-ed spaces for pedestrians in the hot South Texas sun, has defined the bay-front. That changed with a $16 million project on 2.5 acres that called for the re-location of Shoreline Blvd in order to ac-commodate new green spaces along the water's edge. The relocation, reduction of two travel lanes, and removal of the 80-foot wide median of Shoreline Blvd recaptured the bayfront land and al-lowed for the creation of North Bayfront

Park. Traffic tables, intersection neck-downs and reduced lanes curtail traffic and improve the public realm for pedes-trians. North Bayfront Park is also de-signed to accommodate festivals and other activities, such as Buccaneer Days. GC’s on the project were Fulton/Coastcon and Haas–Anderson Con-struction. Architects were Gignac & As-sociates and Sasaki Associates. North Bayfront Park is sited atop the filled material behind the sea wall con-structed after the hurricane. Rainwater from the site is directed to a linear rain garden planted with native coastal mead-ow plants that filter storm water contami-nants and allow water to infiltrate into the ground. The coastal meadow serves as a reminder to visitors of the coastal ecolog-ical landscape prior to the sea wall con-struction and offers environmental edu-cation of the native ecological landscape

A water park feature allows children and adults a place to cool off in the hot Texas summers.

Remember the Fallen

Memorial Day • May25

Front row, L-R: Chelsea Grouse, Sharon Sutter and Sonjia Peterson;back row, L-R: Ray Blaskowsky, Darren Vera, Chris Evins and David Evins

South Texas Construction News • May 2015

The South Texas Construction News (ISSN #2327-4670) is published monthly by Construction News Ltd., dba South Texas Construction News, and distributed by mail to construction related companies in the South Texas area. All submissions should be mailed to our editorial offices. We reserve the right to edit any materials submitted. No fees for materials, copy or photographs submitted will be due unless agreed upon in advance in writing. Submissions will be published at our discretion on a space-available basis. Construction News, Ltd., dba South Texas Construction News, will not be liable for errors in copy or in advertisements beyond the actual cost of space occupied by the error. Publisher reserves the right to reject any advertisement at any time.

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If you are a construction-related companyin Aransas, Atascosa, Bee, Calhoun, Cameron, DeWitt, Dimmit, Frio, Goliad, Hidalgo, Karnes, Kenedy, Kleberg, LaSalle, Live Oak, Maverick,

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Publisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Buddy DoebblerEditorial/Production . . . . . . . Reesa Doebbler Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . .Cyndi WrightProduction Manager. . . . . . . . . . Sue JohnsonSales Representative. . . . . . . . . Kent Gerstner

Crews from Metro Electric, with locations in McAllen, Brownsville and Harlingen,install stadium lights at McAllen High School. –cw

Night lightsConstruction News JOB SIGHT

Man 1, tree 0Construction News JOB SIGHT

Joey Torres of Green Thumb Landscaping in Edinburg takes down a

palm tree. –cw

Bright smilesConstruction News ON LOCATION

Shellee Torres, office and project manager, and Meghan Wilson, with Rural Electric Inc., provide service with a smile in Adkins, TX. –cw


Nathan EichmanKSG Electric, VictoriaElectrician Apprentice

Texas Apprentice

Nathan Eichman grew up in Goliad and attended school there. At 6’3”,

he played basketball while in his fresh-man and sophomore years, but had to quit due to injuries. After high school, he had jobs that included fence build-ing and welder’s helper. He then decided to join the U.S. Air Force in 2007. “I just didn't know what I wanted to do as far as a career,” he said, adding that the GI Bill, which offers education-al benefits for veterans, was another factor in his decision. After joining, Eichman was sta-tioned at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri for five years. While there, his job was weapons armament systems. “Basically, in layman’s terms, that means I loaded bombs on planes,” he said. He left the service with the rank of E4, Senior Airman. “I learned a lot about being a lead-er and working with people of differ-ent backgrounds and experiences,” he says. After his service, he says he took a little time off to relax and then enrolled in the electrical program at Victoria College. His instructor there was Bruce Harrison, who is also a senior estimator at KSG Electric in Victoria. “I asked if KGS was hiring for ap-prentices and shortly after, I had a job,”

Eichman said. He started working at KSG in June 2014. His usual day consists of bending pipe, running conduit and pulling wire. “I like working at KGS because I'm gaining experience towards becoming a journeyman electrician,” he says. “I enjoy gaining knowledge from my su-pervisor and coworkers, as they are very knowledgeable.” Even though he had once worked as a welder’s helper, he decided on electrician for a career. “Everyone is going to need elec-tricity,” he says. His goal is to achieve his master electrician license. So far, Eichman has remained sin-gle and has no children. His hobbies are spending time with his family and friends, playing video games and watching movies. “I also like to spend time shooting my gun on my parent’s property,” he says. His dad, Jimmy Eichman, is a ca-terer and his mother, Bridget Eichman, is a registered nurse at DeTar Hospital. He has two older siblings, a brother and sister, and two nephews and one niece. –cw

The third-generation Alpha

The board of directors at Alpha Building Corporation elected Jon-athan Rogero the San Antonio-

based general contractor’s third genera-tion president. Kathy Acock, after serv-ing 25 years as president of the company her father, Gordon Kovich, started 45 years ago, stepped up to the role of CEO. The transition became effective Apr. 1. As Acock’s son, Rogero, takes on his new position and responsibilities, he is in-stituting a multi-faceted rebranding throughout the company, including its of-fices in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Corpus Christi, Harlingen, Edinburg, College Sta-tion, Lubbock, El Paso, Conroe and Ste-phenville in Texas; Memphis and Murfrees-boro in Tennessee; and Fayetteville, AR. In 1993, Rogero started at Alpha as a laborer, and worked his way up the ranks through many roles, including carpenter, crew foreman, project manager and esti-mator. He earned his associate’s degree in construction project management and bachelor’s degree in business administra-tion by going to school nights and week-ends, and he joined the corporate office.

Rogero has unveiled a new corporate logo and says, “Our primary focus for many years had been Job Order Contract-ing. Over the last two or three years, we saw the need to go into the CSP, design-build and CM at-risk projects. That is a big change for us.” He adds that they are switching to an enterprise software sys-tem to streamline internal communica-tion and operations. As part of the succession changes, Rogero also named his new executive leadership team: Andy Hicks, vice presi-dent of construction operations; Dan Perry, vice president of accounting and finance; and Rob Crow, vice president of business development. Acock has watched her son rise through the leadership of the company, and remarks, “He and I have worked together since 1993. He started in the field. He had a lot of room to grow, and he did. I feel like the company now has transitioned to its third generation, and I know my parents would be very proud of that, very proud of Jonathan and proba-bly a little bit amazed at what their small firm had grown into.” –mh

Kathy Acock has taken on a new position as CEO of Alpha Building Corporation,and Jonathan Rogero is now the third generation president.


Nick Gignac, Associate AIA, LLED AP BD+C, with Gignac Architects in Corpus Christi says he had the time of his life talking to third grade students at Kolda Elementary School. –cw

School daysSubmitted to Construction News

Scary IRS letterKathleen Dvorak, CPA, ShareholderRidoutBarrettSan Antonio, TX

How about that sinking feeling you get when you find an IRS envelope in your mailbox and you know

it’s not a refund check? With anxiety you slit open the envelope knowing it’s going to be bad news. “The IRS says I owe how much?”

Well I may have some good news for you. There’s a possibility you may qualify for penalty abatement. So, if a significant portion of what the IRS says you owe is penalty, and interest on that penalty, it may be worthwhile to work with the IRS in an effort to have the penalty abated. If penalties are successfully abated, interest related to those abated penalties should also vanish. Some helpful IRS agents will actually work with you or your appointed repre-sentative to maximize the abatement of penalties and related interest. When working with the IRS in an effort to have penalties abated for clients, some tax practitioners may even occasionally speak with very helpful agents who pro-vide guidance on how to get a bigger abatement. The IRS has programs in place to allow taxpayers, who are not ha-bitually charged with the same type of penalty, to receive a First-Time Abate-ment Waiver. Before using this get-out-of-jail-free card however, taxpayers as-sessed with penalties should first consid-er whether or not they may have the penalty removed “for cause” and save the first-time penalty abatement request for a possible future need. The IRS grants penalty abatements when the taxpayer can show just cause for the deviation from the rules or regula-tions. Unfortunately, being unaware of the rules and regulations is not just cause for abatement. The IRS often grants First-Time Pen-alty Abatements to qualifying taxpayers. Certain types of penalty assessments can be abated if the taxpayer has not been assessed the same type of penalty within the prior three-year period and if the tax-payer is otherwise in compliance with that same type of issue for subsequent and current periods. If a taxpayer has had, or does have, an installment agree-ment in place and he or she has been making timely payments according to the plan, the taxpayer is still considered to be compliant and may still qualify for the abatement.

Tax practitioners have available to them an IRS Tax Practitioner’s Hotline which allows practitioners to work on be-half of their clients with agents who are generally very knowledgeable, helpful and frequently authorized to correct is-sues and grant certain penalty abate-ments over the phone at the time of the call from the tax practitioner. Unfortu-nately, because of budget cuts and a re-duced staff of IRS agents, the tax practi-tioner is often on hold for great lengths of time, sometimes between one and two hours before the tax practitioner is able to speak to an agent. However, pa-tience is not only a virtue, but in these instances it can also be fiscally beneficial, resulting in the savings of significant dol-lars in penalties and related interest. Other options available to qualifying taxpayers are Installment Agreements and Offers-In- Compromise. If a taxpayer finds he is unable to fully pay a tax debt by the due date, he may be able to obtain an Installment Agreement and make monthly payments over time. Penalties and interest continue to accrue however, so the best option is to pay it off as quick-ly as possible. For those who may find themselves unable to full pay a tax debt over a 72-month Installment Agreement, the taxpayer may be eligible for an Offer-In-Compromise to have part of the tax li-ability removed. There are many issues involved with Installment Agreements and Offers-In- Compromise for which an-other article would be required. But know that these are possible solutions to con-sider when a taxpayer cannot immedi-ately full pay a federal tax liability. If you find the dreaded IRS envelope in your mailbox, know that you may have options for some relief.

Kathleen Dvorak obtained her CPA li-cense in 1988 while working in private in-dustry. Kathleen went into public account-ing in 2001 and joined RidoutBarrett as a department manager in 2005. She became a shareholder of the firm in 2011.

Compliance quick check:Top common group health plan issuesTerrell Taylor, PartnerChrist Taylor InsuranceHouston, TX

Affordability under healthcare reform: Wellness credits and surcharges cannot be taken into consid-

eration when determining affordability under the em-ployer mandate, unless they are tobacco-related. Additionally, small employers must determine affordability for purposes of the Marketplace Notice. Finally, individuals should be informed as to the affordability of coverage for purposes of the premium tax credit subsidies available in the federal marketplace.

Payment of individual policy premi-ums: Some employers have begun to explore the possibility of providing con-tributions toward health coverage pur-chased in the individual market, includ-ing coverage and employee purchases through either a private or public ex-change. In Sep. 2013, the IRS published Notice 2013-54, essentially prohibiting the payment, subsidy or reimbursement of the cost of individual policy premiums by an employer. The IRS requires that a participant in an employer-sponsored ar-rangement that is designed to pay for health coverage on a tax free basis also be enrolled in a group health plan.

Nondiscrimination: Corrections to any failed nondiscrimination test are not per-mitted after year end. This means that the status of the plan should be moni-tored during the year so that any adjust-ments can be made prior to year end. As a best practice, testing should be per-formed several times during the plan year to help a plan sponsor facilitate cor-rections and show, upon audit, that the plan passes the appropriate tests.

Failure to offer COBRA: If an employer offers benefits that satisfy the definition of a group health plan, the employer should also offer COBRA in connection with the plan. Commonly overlooked group health plans include flexible spending arrange-ments, health savings accounts, employee assistance programs and wellness pro-grams. Failure to offer COBRA may subject the employer to penalties under ERISA, an excise tax under the tax code, and penal-ties and remedies by the court.

Mixing up HIPPA and COBRA notices: The HIPAA Special Enrollment Rights No-tice and the COBRA Initial Notice are commonly confused, but the application and audience are different. Employers should ensure that the HIPAA document is provided to all employees (not just those covered under the plan) who are offered the opportunity to enroll. Con-versely, the COBRA document is only pro-vided to employees and spouses who are actually covered under the plan within 90 days of the beginning date.

Medicare/Tricare prohibition: An em-ployer with 20 or more employees may not offer to pay, subsidize or otherwise reimburse the cost of TRICARE or Medi-care coverage for employees or their spouses, as this could be seen as taking such coverage into account and incentiv-izing the individual to drop group health coverage.

FMLA: Final regulations released in Feb-ruary 2013 expanded the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to include leave for family members who are on or have been called to active duty. Extended leave is available for an employee to care for a fam-ily member with a serious illness or injury.

Advance notice of midyear plan changes required: Health care reform introduced the summary of benefits and coverage requirement. Under SBC distri-bution rules, if a plan changes informa-tion or design midyear, an updated SBC must be provided 60 days in advance of the effective date of the change. A sum-mary of material modification (SMM) may also be required on an expedited basis when a plan change is made.

Charging employees different premi-ums: In general, an employer is free to design their plan to charge employees different premiums as long as it is based on bona fide employment classifications or participation in a wellness program. However such plans must ensure they will pass nondiscrimination rules under both IRS code Section 125 and 105(h). Assess-ing premium differentials based on the satisfaction of a health standard (such as not smoking) is only permitted when it is part of a wellness program that satisfies the five criteria of the federal regulations.

Christ Taylor Insurance is an Employee Benefits and Insurance Brokerage firm do-ing business for over 50 years in southeast Texas, and long-time ABC member. The firm provides solutions to small and medium size companies for healthcare and benefit pro-grams, as well as life insurance and Retire-ment Plans. Contact the Christ Taylor team at 713-850-7747 or www.christtaylor.com


Where would you take a road trip?

Spring birdie

The windy spring weather did not deter the participants of the 29th annual Association of Builders and

Contractors Mid Coast Chapter (ABC) Golf Tournament at Victoria Country Club Mar. 20. Forty-four teams and 175 partici-pants came together to raise funds for the ABC chapter. Congrats to the winners! –cw

1st Place Team: Mike Rivet, Formosa; Glen Heim, Turner Industries; Lynn Cormier, Baker Shoring; J.R. Perez, VCS Compa-nies; Jim Quitta, Formosa2nd Place Team: Eddie Houseton, Tim Blachette, Tommie Collier, Pee-Wee Porter

Longest Drive #1: Pee-Wee Porter Closest to the Hole #12: Tommie CollierStraightest Drive #14: Darryl Hammond

First place winners with Kristi Stevenson, president/CEO, of ABC Texas Mid Coast Chapter

Are you ready fornew union rules?Sewell C. “Spike” Cutler, PrincipalCutler-Smith PCDallas, TX

New union-representation election rules are effec-tive as of April 14, 2015; are you ready?

You may recall earlier efforts by the current administration's National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to enact substan-tial changes to union-representation election policies and procedures, chang-es to substantially expedite union elec-tions and eliminate procedural protec-tions employers had when faced with union election petitions. The new rules, sometimes called "Rocket Election" or "Quickie Election" rules, were set aside af-ter a determination that the board adopt-ing the rules at the time included im-properly- appointed members. The prior reprieve has turned out to be temporary; a properly-constituted NLRB adopted a final rule in December, effective April 14, 2015, which imple-ments accelerated election rules. Not only does the new rule accelerate the union election process, it also has some real gems to assist unions in organizing workgroups. The Final Rule, as published in the Federal Register, is 182 pages long, but its most important impacts can be summarized as follows:

1. Union representation election peti-tions may now be submitted electroni-cally, including petitions, voter lists and statutorily-required notices; in the past, these had to be submitted by mail, in-person or by facsimile.2. Regional directors for the NLRB are now expected to set a "pre-election hear-ing" within eight days after hearing no-tice issues, and conduct a post-election hearing 14 days after the filing of any ob-jections; importantly, and critically, elec-tions will not be stayed (delayed) pend-ing resolution of most issues, whereas in the past, elections were not held until pre-election issues, including the validity of voter lists and potential bargaining units, were resolved.3. Employers must submit a position statement setting out issues with the prospective election at least one busi-ness day before the hearing, or waive such issues; previously, all relevant issues could be considered.4. Employers will now be required to give the union a list of possible voters, their locations, the job classifications, and will have to include personal phone num-bers and email addresses for all such em-ployees, and this list has to be provided within two days after the regional direc-tor directs that election be held. So, em-

ployers are required to actively assist or-ganizers in their efforts to line-up em-ployees against them. Bottom line, the process of going from the collection of expressions of in-terest (election cards) to actually con-ducting the election is vastly faster, and the employer is required to help the union get in touch with its people. While the new rules are couched in terms of "fairness," most press favoring the new rules is written with the assump-tion that all employers are large, well fi-nanced, and have only the worst inter-ests of their workers at heart, something most small business owners know to be false. Small businesses are required, as a matter of practical reality, to hire counsel to challenge elections, and they have to do it quickly – while unions already have full-time, trained professional organizers and counsel on staff. Congress passed a bill blocking the new rules, but President Obama immedi-ately vetoed the legislation. Challenges have been filed, includ-ing one filed by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), the Associated General Contractors (AGC) and the Na-tional Federation of Independent Busi-ness (NFIB), in Federal District Court for the Western District of Texas. Employers must ensure that they know the rules governing representation elections. Most importantly, employers must maintain a clear line of communica-tions between the employees and com-pany management. Employees who know their employer has their best inter-ests at heart are less likely to call for a union election. If you learn of strangers hanging around jobsites or contacting your em-ployees, find out about what's going on so you can ensure that any decisions made are made with factual information in hand. Union organizers rely upon poor communication and misinformation and they are pros at doing this. At the first sign of difficulty, be sure you consult with counsel about what you can - and cannot - do in responding to a union organizing campaign.

Cutler-Smith PC focuses on representa-tion of construction trade contractors and the commercial construction industry. For more information on the firm and its indus-try advocacy, call 214-219-0800 or see the web site www.TexasConstructionLaw.com

Coushatta…need I say more?Lynda Parma, VCS Companies

I would love to take a road trip to Wash-ington D.C. to see all the beautiful wild flowers along the way and end up at the National Cherry Blossom Festival!

Stephanie Marie Rendon, Terracon

If I could just take off today and go any-where I’d head out for Davis Mountain State Park in Fort Davis. The drive would take us through the beautiful Hill Country to enjoy the wildflowers in full bloom. Once in Fort Davis and the park, my hus-band and I could set up our tent and enjoy our newfound love of camping. My child-hood holds lots of great memories of Fort Davis and the McDonald Observatory, but we always stayed in the Indian Lodge. I think this road trip would be a fun way to share these memories and experiences with my husband, while incorporating a night or two in a tent and cooking over an open fire! Hadn’t thought about that in a while… now I really want to go!

D’Anna Wallace, Raba Kistner Inc.

Camp Wood Texas to enjoy the remote, slow paced, relaxing Texas Hill Country life.

Shane Dworaczyk, Testengeer

Pacific coast highway - have always want-ed to.

Billi Rue, Cut Antz Land Improvement

San Francisco...It is in my bucket list to ex-perience the Golden Gate Bridge as there's so much history where people have taken away their lives in the name of love...in movies and real life! It is an amazing iconic symbol of San Francisco and at one point the longest suspension bridge. Then along with it, a tour to Alca-traz which holds a lot of history about the most dangerous felons who served time in this maximum security facility.

Liz Cantu, Briggs Equipment

Costa Rica, in fact I'm here now. My wife and I renewed our wedding vows on April 15, our 10th anniversary and are here celebrating.

Joe Solis Jr., ABC Painting & Drywall

I would take my kids and go see my sister and her family in Tulsa. I haven't seen them in awhile.

Roy Garrison, Hurricane Fence

Road trip to Seattle, Washington via Cali-fornia because it would allow me to see the many facets of God’s beautiful earth.

Debbie Montez, AIA Corpus Christi

I’m thinking about taking my husband to New Orleans for a quick road trip this summer. I visited there about 10 years ago for a weekend and fell in love with some of the things I found, like the cem-etery tour. It’s an amazing history of the people that are buried there, especially the Voodoo Queens. People leave relics on their tombstones. I also loved sitting at Cafe du Monde in the mornings and drinking chicory coffee while eating a beignet. We rode the trolley car to the Garden District and strolled through the neighborhoods taking in the amazing lush foliage. New Orleans is a fascinating place for a quick weekend jaunt.

Cyndi Wright, Construction News

Real SteelConstruction News ON LOCATION

Jessica Ochoa, Travis French and Brooke Reeves provide professional customer service at American Steel & Supply in Corpus Christi. –bd


Trent and EstherHoffman

OwnersBay Area

Landscape NurseryCorpus Christi

Watching Trent and Esther Hoff-man work together, it’s obvious to see that this husband and

wife team has had many years of practice getting it right. Twenty years, to be exact. When they met while both were stu-dents at UTSA, it’s unlikely they knew that someday they would own one of Corpus Christi’s most successful land-scaping and nursery companies, but they both brought strengths to the union that enabled this dream to become a reality. Tell me a little about your back-grounds. Trent: I graduated from Carroll High School in Corpus Christi in 1987. In 1995, I received a Bachelor of Science in biology from UTSA. Esther: I grew up in Pleasanton. I at-tended UTSA, studying agronomics.

Tell me about your upbringings. Trent: My parents are Mike and Joyce Hoffman. My mom was a paralegal and my father was the operations manager for a recycling company. He worked for them for 30+ years. They are now retired and living in The Woodlands. There were three children. My sister is an RN and my brother is a partner in the CPA firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. I don’t know where my entrepre-neurial spirit comes from, but I got my work ethic from my parents. All three of their children are successful, so that says something.

I wasn’t sure I wanted to go to col-lege, so my father laid it out pretty clear-ly: work or college. And he worked me hard. It caused me to pursue college (laughs). My father was stern, but fair. Esther: My parents, Mary and George Nettles, owned a successful bar-bershop in Pleasanton for 27 years. There were five children. They instilled in us a good work eth-ic, integrity and honesty. They taught us to work for what we want.

How did the two of you meet? Esther: My toilet overflowed in my apartment (laughs). Trent: That’s how she always starts this story! In college, I owned a carpet cleaning company, so she hired me to clean and dry the carpet. Esther: I thought he was cute. I gave my phone number to a friend of his that was working for him. Trent: Well, I don’t date my custom-ers, but I called her and we started dat-ing and got married in 1995.

That’s a great story! What happened next? Trent: I graduated that year and we immediately moved to Orlando, Fla. where I had accepted a job with a recy-cling company. I got my teaching certifi-cate while I was there. I hadn’t really planned on teaching, but after doing that in Florida for a couple of years, we moved to Corpus Christi. I taught middle school and high school and in 1999, I started residential lawn maintenance as a side job. One summer, I got a job maintaining an apartment complex and it just kind of grew into more commercial lawn main-tenance. With that comes landscaping.

So, from teaching to landscaping? Trent: Yes. I started getting more knowledge about plants. In 2011, I be-came a licensed irrigator. I’m one of those who believe your home looks as good as your landscape. I’ve always been interested in how a landscape contributes to the aesthetics and makes something more appealing to the eye.

You sound like you have an artist’s soul. Trent: My only artistic bent is an eye-pleasing landscape! (Laughs) My canvas is a flowerbed.

Did you know from a young age that you were interested in landscaping? When I was four, I took my blocks in the backyard and placed them all around.

When my mother asked me what I was doing, I told her I was building a sprinkler system. When I was seven, I asked for a sprinkler for my birthday present. When I was eight and nine, I was mowing lawns.

So, after starting the lawn mainte-nance business in 1999, when and why did you open the nursery? Trent: We started the nursery in 2013 on Holly Street and then moved to this location on S. Staples Street in 2014. I’ve always wanted to open a nurs-ery. I’ve always been interested in plants and the retail side of things. Do you have an affinity for working with plants and nature? Esther: This is an awesome place to work. It’s amazing how just coming here can change your mood. It’s a very calming environment. The aroma is incredible. You can hear the birds singing, listen to bees buzzing and right after the plants are watered, the smell of the rosemary and lavender is in-credible. Trent: If you are going to work in this field, you really have to love plants and nature. You need to be able to have a vi-sion and a good eye. You have to have passion to make it work. These are living things, so you have to have the desire – especially in the sum-mer months when the plants really need more attention.

Tell me about your employees. Esther: We really value our good em-ployees. We stress team building and communication. We encourage them to

take ownership of their job. Trent: It is difficult to find good help, so when you find good employees, you work hard to treat them right. What is your philosophy towards cus-tomers? Trent: I always tell new employees, “I write the checks, but the customer pays the salaries.” We treat our customers right. Esther: As consumers, we like to be able to rely on service, quality and conti-nuity. That is what we want to provide. Nurseries are like a getaway. It’s an experience. We want our customers to have a good nature experience.

Tell me about your family. Esther: Our eldest is Kaitlyn. She is 18 and a senior at London High School. She interns at the district attorney’s office. Then there is Jacob, he is 15, and Hannah, 8. All the kids work here. Jacob is very strong and athletic. He plays football, basketball and runs track, so he gets to do some of the heavy lifting around here. Hannah is a very sweet little girl. The joke around the house is that she is Trent’s favorite. –cw

Bay Area Landscape provides grading services, erosion solutions, solutions to wa-ter retention problems, drainage solutions, spring/fall color plantings, perennial instal-lation and care, irrigation system mainte-nance/troubleshooting and repair, profes-sional mulch and pine straw installation and all types of overall landscape improve-ment solutions.

Esther and Trent Hoffman stand in the quiet tranquility of the large greenhouse.

SLI Group, out of Houston, is the GC on this project building a Prosperity Bank in downtown Corpus Christi. –cw

Bank on itConstruction News JOB SIGHT


BAFFIN BAY –– LAGUNA MADRE –– LAND CUTSPECKLED TROUT –– REDFISH –– FLOUN DER

FISHING AND HUNTING TRIPS

(361) 949-7359www.baffi nbaycharters.com

[email protected]

U.S. Coast Guard &Texas Parks and Wildlife Licensed

STEVE SCHULTZ OUTDOORS, LLC

Pre-summerpatterns and tactics

by Capt. Steve Schultz

Sponsored by:Premier Yamaha Boating Center,

Majek Boats, E-Z Bel Construction, Power Pole Shallow Water Anchor, Aggregate ForEverlast Hunting and

Fishing Products and Columbia Sportswear.

High winds and an abundance of rainfall in April made fishing a lit-tle more difficult for most of last

month. There was also one storm where severe weather moved through and winds were clocked at 60 mph, catching some anglers by surprise and far from home. Despite some harsh weather and terrible water conditions in the upper la-goon, our bay system should prosper from the rains and recover for the up- coming summer months. With May approaching, you should start seeing those croaker flag starting to appear at the local marinas. Fishing strat-egies will change as we make the transi-tion from shrimp to croakers. Rock struc-tures, reefs, grass beds and potholes are areas which need to be keyed on. It is very important when approaching these areas to use a trolling motor or push pole. Anchoring up on the outside edges of these areas can be very productive on spawning trout. Setting up on these lo-cations is the key to catching fish. Always

approach the intended area with the wind at your back, carefully estimating the length of your anchor rope and the distance of your cast. Once you have drifted over the area, you intend to fish because your anchor didn’t hold or you misjudged the wind. You might as well find a new area to fish and try that spot later in the day. During the summer months here in the Coastal Bend, anglers can find some of the best fishing along the entire coast. Our bays are loaded with resident fish and tide runners, which constantly are ar-riving from the Gulf. With school being out for summer and the weather getting better everyday, that can only mean one thing . . . boating and fishing pressure will be one of the most important factors for not being able to find large quantity of fish or stay on those fish once you have a bite going. That is why I emphasize so much that the best fishing is usually dur-ing the week instead of on a weekend. Another alternative to getting away from the heat and crowded bays is late eve-ning and night fishing. Fishing late into the evening and into the night during the full moon can get you out of everyday crowds and into some of the more popular fishing areas without being hassled by novice boat operators and inpatient anglers. I have experienced all aspects of these people trying to move-in on a set of rocks or a sand pocket you are catching fish from and scare all the fish away. It has reached a point where you have to do some homework and really think about how you will go about catching fish on any given day. My tech-tip for the month keys on us-ing braided line when fishing either live bait or artificial lures. Power Pro Slick 8 is this captain’s line of choice. It’s smooth as silk feel gives you extra long cast and is sensitive enough to feel every bite. To schedule your next bay fishing trip give Capt. Steve Schultz a call at 361-813-3716 or 361-334-3105 or e-mail him at SteveSchultzOutdoors @ gmail .com. Good luck and Good Fishing.

Davin Cox of George West shows his catch before getting back in theboat with Steve Schultz Outdoors.

Nice!Submitted to Construction News

Chris Evins, Evins Glass Service in Corpus Christi, was at Padre Island National Seashore and took this black-tipped shark. Chris says if he is not working,

you will find him fishing! –cw


Half or Full Day Fishing Trips

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Ken Milam Guide Service(325) 379-2051

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Ken Milam’s Fishing LineSince 1981, Ken Milam has been guiding fishing trips for striped bass on Lake Buchanan in the Texas Hill Country,. You can hear Ken on radio on Saturday and Sunday mornings, 6-8

AM on AM 1300, The Zone – Austin, or http://www.am1300the zone.com

Ah, springtime in Texas! The Hill Country wildflowers are winding down, school is wrapping up and

the fishing action is heating up! We are off to a good start this year on Lake Buchanan. The old lake hasn’t caught much water over the winter months, but we have learned to fish the low lake and know how to cope with it. So far we are seeing lots of good healthy fish trending larger as fewer people seem to want to mess with a low lake. As with any other game animal, the secret to get-ting bigger trophies is letting them have more time to grow. I know I’m always on my soapbox try-ing to get people to realize the impor-tance of getting out and taking their kids hunting and fishing. I firmly believe the old adage, “Take your kid hunting and you won’t be hunting for your kid.” I once had an old judge on my boat who told me he never had a kid in his courtroom that had a hunting or fishing license in their pocket. I think it is the combination of time spent with our kids and letting them have a chance to learn the lessons nature can teach that can help them become more balanced and confident people. With that in mind, try to take a little time as school lets out for the summer to look at your summer plans and go ahead and make your reservations for family travel and events. Try to book your hunt-ing or fishing trips through vacation time instead of having to settle for just doing anything you can still do at the last few

days of vacation. Our schedule and I’m sure that of most other recreational ser-vices looks like spring break all over again during the month of August because of the end of vacation panic. We do appre-ciate the business, but we really hate to turn families away because they all want to go at once. During early summer we see nice weather before summer heat really gets settled in and that makes outdoor trips more comfortable. As far as fishing is concerned the earlier trips will usually

have better fishing and larger fish be-cause they are just ending their spawn-ing season. The fish will continue to bite well through the summer months, but sometimes if we have a really hot sum-mer they will start to slow down around mid-August. That is why trips earlier in the season are so good for bringing the kids along. You want to get them hooked on fishing with a good strong “catching” trip so they will want to continue fishing.As we get into the months of the year when we can see more rainfall we are all

hoping that the El Nino pattern we are moving into will bring the much needed rains to begin restoring our lakes and riv-ers to more normal levels. If that doesn’t actually happen, at least it should bring in some water to freshen up out water bodies and keep fishing good. At any rate its prime time fishing now and I hope you can find the time to join us – on the water!

TexasStyle

San Antonio Austin South Texas Houston South Texas

www.ConstructionNews.netpublishing the industry’s news


www.alamocrane.com

San Antonio (210) 344-7370Austin (512) 282-6866Toll Free (800) 880-0134

From El Pasoto Beaumont,Amarillo to Brownsville

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Building SandPlant inHarwood,Texas

McAllen Valley Roofing Company’s sign is in the shape of a roofing

hammer. According to owner Brian McSteen, it is the world’s tallest roofing hammer sign and is the same size as the tallest hammer

sign in the world! –cw

Hammer slammerSubmitted to Construction News

When driving between Harlingen and McAllen on Hwy. 83, be sure and check out this auto repair shop that has an old car raised above the road. –cw

Cars afar

Historical storyConstruction News JOB SIGHT

Jose Torres, with Curtis Hunt Restoration out of Elmendorf, is busy with the renovation of the Karnes County Courthouse. The GC is MJ Boyle General Contractor,

San Antonio. –cw

in CONSTRUCTION NEWSis the

Send your Stories and Photos to your city editorSan Antonio: [email protected]: [email protected]: [email protected]

DFW: [email protected]: [email protected]

Twenty-three years ago, Jose Alva-rez was working at a local lumber company in Harlingen when a

friend asked him if he would start selling bricks in the Valley. That was the beginning of Triple AAA Inc., a business that now has three locations and is a true family-owned business with Jose as president and four other siblings as owners: Julio Alvarez, Lauro Alvarez, Maria N. Alvarez and Jose-fina Martinez. The family grew up in Brownsville and the siblings all had fulltime jobs when Triple AAA first opened its doors. Julio had been at a supermarket for nine years, Lauro was – and still is – a teacher, Maria had been with Haggar Clothing in Brownsville for 20 years, and Josefina was a housewife. But the brick business took off and, with the exception of Lauro, who does the books part-time, the siblings all became full-time employees. Julio runs the Los Fresnos location, while Josefina runs the Padre Island High-way Brownsville location and Jose and

Sticking with bricks

Maria run the Paredes Line Road location, also in Brownsville. Julio says once they started selling bricks, then they needed to sell the mor-tar for the bricks, then sand for the mor-tar and it became “everything for bricks”. The company also sells concrete blocks and tile. The success of the company rests on the good service the family provides to their customers. “We try to give good service to our customers,” Julio says. “Our drivers have a good attitude and if a driver calls in sick, then we get in the truck and make deliv-eries. All the brothers have their CDL li-cense.” And this family doesn’t just work to-gether, they spend time off together as well. “Everybody goes to church on Sun-day, then to the cemetery (to visit their parent’s gravesites), then to breakfast at Josefina’s house,” Julio describes. “There are usually more than 30 of us. We all bring food.” –cw

The Alvarez siblings remain close today. Back, L-R: Lauro, Jose, Julio and Juan;front, L-R: Maria, Olga, Josefina and Alejandra


Construction News JOB SIGHT

In the lines

Paul Watson with Chain Electric Co. out of Mississippi and a crew are reconducting the line along Hwy. 87. The GC is Phelps Electric, Floresville. –cw

Amanda Slaughter and Roscoe take care of business at Seymour Construction LLC in Karnes City. –cw

Which one’s the boss?Construction News ON LOCATION

More than 300 customers helped celebrate the official grand opening of the new H&E Equip-

ment Services Corpus Christi location on April 2. Situated on eight acres, the new 22,000-sf facility has enabled the loca-tion to grow its services for customers considerably, said Toby Hawkins, direc-tor of marketing. “This larger facility allows us to ex-pand our services and inventory as we continue to grow to meet the increasing equipment demands of our customers in rentals, sales, parts and service,” Hawkins says. Branch manager Tom Hennig says customers have expressed appreciation for the new location, which features more efficient office space, a large parts ware-house and yard area, twelve service bays and a repair shop that includes two, five-ton overhead cranes. The facility is capa-ble of repairing a variety of machines from compact construction equipment to large cranes. “We’ve had a lot of customers come in because of the convenience of our lo-cation – right off the I-37 highway. It’s a beautiful location,” Hennig says. “They are impressed by the quality of the shop and offices. They are amazed by the im-provements over our old location.”

A grand achievement

Both Hawkins and Hennig agree that the new facility has also helped attract quality employees. “The staff has grown by 30-40 per-cent since the move,” Hawkins says. “Our desire is to be able to hire local talent. We really believe in our slogan: We’re an equipment company, run by equipment people.” With safety being first and foremost in mind, Hennig says being able to hire good employees is paramount to suc-cess. “We feel fortunate to attract experi-enced employees that understand out-standing customer service and embrace our safety culture,” he says. “Safety is very important to our company.” Attending the big event were Brad Barber, president and COO, and John Engquist, CEO. The company, now with 70 locations nationwide, was started in 1961 by John Engquist’s father, Tom Engquist. Hennig said the staff was thrilled to welcome Barber and Engquist, along with the 300+ new and existing custom-ers that attended this special event. H&E Equipment Services is located at 7809 IH-37 South. The branch specializes in aerial lifts, earthmoving equipment, cranes and general construction equipment. –cw

H&E Corpus Christi Grand Opening. Flying in for the big day were, L-R: Brad Barber, president and COO, and John Engquist, CEO. Far right, Tom Hennig, branch manager.

More than 300 people joined 18 vendors to celebrate the grand opening.

After 65 years in business, Easy Drive is still on the cutting edge of its industry. As a supplier for engi-

neers, surveyors and contractors, the family-owned company has evolved with its customers as their needs become in-creasingly technological. James Rodriguez, vice president, says that the company has solutions to fit those needs, and those solutions are what they sell to customers. As of about six months ago, those solutions now in-clude drones. As this new technology is up and coming and the FAA changes their regulations, Rodriguez notes that drones will become more and more of a tool for contractors, and Easy Drive will have them on hand as they grow in pop-ularity and utilization. “The exciting part about it is that we’re always on the leading edge,” says Rodriguez of his family’s company. “The construction industry has just been bombarded by more and more technical needs,” explains Annette

Driving on the edge

Mollere, marketing director. “The best practices for construction have evolved into a very technical field and it really is pushing our customers into being differ-ent types of corporations.” Mollere estimates that 85 to 90 per-cent of construction companies have be-come adopters of new technologies to stay competitive in the modern market and become more efficient. She notes that even smaller companies have learned that equipment like a robotic to-tal station would make them more pre-cise and more attractive to a general con-tractor looking to work with small busi-nesses whose efficiency will complement their projects. Easy Drive also supplies the San An-tonio Police Department with laser scan-ning and robotic technology, which they use for high tech mapping of crime scenes and accident sites. Easy Drive has two San Antonio locations, one on Ruiz and one on East Nakoma, and one in Aus-tin. –mh

James Rodriguez, vice president, and his wife, Annette Mollere, marketing director, keep Easy Drive running smoothly at the company’s East Nakoma location in San Antonio.


Concrete Industry

Have cements changed?Dave Suchorski, Senior Technical Services Manager/Sales ManagerAsh Grove Cement Company, Ankeny, IA

Cement is one of the world's most popular building materials and has been used for over 2,000 years.

Structures such as the Roman Coliseum were construct-ed using a form of cement. Some are still standing today. Cements changed very little until 1824 when an English-man, Joseph Aspdin, received a patent for his new meth-od of proportioning and blending raw material based upon chemistry. He named his product Portland cement because mortar made with his product had a color simi-lar to a natural building stone that was quarried from the Isle of Portland off the coast of England. Improvements by Aspdin and others have led to the cement we are cur-rently using. Portland cement has not changed signifi-cantly in the last 100 years. In 2004, the Portland Cement Association surveyed all 123 cement plants in the U.S. and Canada (P. Tennis, J. Bhatty, 2005). This survey collected and compared ce-ment data in three different areas: chemical and phase composition, fineness, and strength. This data was then compared to survey data from 1994 and the early 1950s. These surveys proved there have been very few chemical changes. While cement is still made up primar-ily of calcium, silica, alumina and iron, there has been a slight change in the phase composition. Tri-calcium sili-cate (C3S), the compound primarily responsible for ear-ly strengths, has increased, while dicalcium silicate (C2S), the compound responsible for later age strength, has decreased. These phase composition changes, as well as an in-crease in fineness (Blaine) result in modern cements that have higher early strengths. There has been a de-mand in construction to increase early strengths to speed up construction processes, allowing wall forms to be stripped earlier and pavements and slabs to be opened to traffic sooner. Although cube compressive strengths between the cements from the 1950s and the 1990s are not directly comparable due to a change in the water content used to make the strength samples, the table shows an approximation of the strengths and how they have gone up since the 1950's. (See table.)

Blended cements One of the bigger changes in the cement industry is the increase in the amount and types of blended ce-ments being manufactured. Blended cements combine Portland cement with Supplemental Cementitious Ma-terials (SCMs) and other minerals to produce cements with specific enhanced properties. SCMs are materials

such as fly ash, ground granulated blast furnace slag, silica fume, calcined clay and volcanic ash. These materi-als are either blended with ground cement or inter-ground with cement clinker at the finish mills in tightly controlled proportions. The SCMs chemically combine with the hydration products of the Portland cement to reduce the permeability of concrete and increase con-crete durability. Blended cements can be formulated to mitigate Al-kali Silica Reaction (ASR) in concrete containing reactive aggregates. Blended cements can also be formulated to increase sulfate resistance in concrete exposed to high sulfate soils and water. Certain blended cements can be used to lower the heat of hydration in mass concrete, such as dams and large foundations. Blended cements can also have gypsum contents optimized for the blend of the cement and SCMs. Gyp-sum is used to control the setting of cement to prevent false and flash sets in concrete. The gypsum does this by controlling the alumina portion of cements. Some SCMs also have alumina compounds that can compete with the alumina compounds in the Portland cement for the gypsum. This can lead to rapid slump loss and setting problems in concrete. Blended cements can have in-creased gypsum to optimize the SCMs.Blended cements are manufactured to comply with ASTM C 595, Standard Specification for Blended Ce-ments. The blended cements are designated as Type IP(X) for pozzolan blended cements containing fly ash, or natural pozzolan SCMs, such as calcined clay or volca-nic ash or Type IS(X) slag blended cements, where (X) is the percent of SCM in the blend. For example, Type IS(25) is a blended cement with 25% slag. In recent years, another type of blended cement has been gaining popularity in North America, Type IL. This is a Portland cement type that contains interground limestone. Cements blended with up to 35% ground limestone have been used for many years in other parts of the world and are often the predominate cement used. By intergrinding limestone, the clinker content of the cement can be lowered. Lowering the clinker con-tent helps to reduce the CO2 emissions per ton of ce-ment and thereby per cubic yard of concrete.

Concrete is a green building material. Durable concrete has a long service life that ex-pends very little energy, giving it a long, sustainable life cycle. Reducing the CO2 emissions during manufactur-

ing helps concrete be an even more sustainable build-ing material. Research has shown that controlling the fineness and the particle size distribution during inter-grinding results in a cement that produces similar prop-erties as concrete made with other types of cements. The cement industry faces increasing regulatory is-sues and is constantly striving to reduce energy con-sumption. As the industry responds to these challenges, changes in the manufacturing process may result in slight changes in the cements produced. The cement in-dustry will be working with the chemical and admix in-dustry, concrete producers, researchers and specifiers to provide cements that will produce durable and sustain-able concrete that can last for centuries. Suchorski is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and a registered professional engineer in Kansas and Wis-consin. Dave has over 30 years experience in the cement and concrete industry. He is a Fellow of the American Con-crete Institute, a member of the Board of Directors and serves as the chairman of the Curing Concrete Committee. Dave is also a member of the Parking Lot, Pervious Con-crete and Hydraulic Cements Certification Program and Chapter Activities Committees. –cw

References:For more information on cements go to The Portland Cement Association website: http://www.cement.org.Bhatty, J.I., Tennis, P.D., “Portland Cement Characteris-tics-2004,” Concrete Technology Today, Vol. 26, No. 3, CT053, Portland Cement Association, Skokie, Illinois, De-cember, 2005, pages 1-3.http://www.cement.org/tech/pdfs/CT053_cement.pdfTennis, P. D., “Portland Cement Characteristics -1998,” ConcreteTechnology Today, Vol. 2, No. 2, PL992, Portland Cement Association, Skokie, Illinois, August 1999, pages 1–4.www.cement.org/tech/pdfs/pl992.pdf“Portland Cement: Past and Present Characteristics,” Con-crete Technology Today, Vol. 17, No. 2, PL962, Portland Ce-ment Association, Skokie, Illinois, July 1996, pages 1–3.http://www.cement.org/pdf_files/pl962.pdf

Paying attentionto the detailsKimberly Acosta, OwnerKDA Custom Floor Co.Katy, TX

What sparked your interest in stained concrete flooring?

In 1949, my grandfather and his brothers came to Dallas and opened a company installing all types of flooring, including stained concrete and hard-wood floors.

They were one of the first people to introduce concrete staining to the United States. I learned all about stained concrete from my family over the years. I asked my family members ques-tions about stained concrete at family re-unions and when we got together for the holidays. I opened KDA Custom Floor Co in 2005.

In your opinion, what is the state of the construction industry? There is plenty of work right now. We got really busy last year in April and we didn’t slow down. Normally there is a slow down in De-cember and January. We just kept on go-ing this year. We have stayed very busy with com-mercial projects in 2015.

What types of changes have you seen in your industry since you opened your company 10 years ago? We still do things the old school way, but I have noticed nowadays more peo-ple prefer a sealer for protection. Polished concrete and overlays are more popular these days. How do you stay up-to-date with new trends? It is my goal to attend the World of Concrete in Las Vegas next year to learn about new technologies and products in the industry. I get so busy it is hard to

leave for a few days. I want to go though! We recently took part in a polished concrete class to freshen up our skills. I went to a flooring convention this past year to gather new information about products and services as well.

In your opinion, what are the keys to success in your industry? First of all, you have to know exactly how to do stained concrete. It is impor-tant to do it correctly.

In addition, I think you have to pay attention to details, be professional and provide excellent customer service.

If a young person wants to do what you do today, what advice would you give him or her? I think it would be a good idea to be-come an apprentice and learn from a more experienced person in the industry. If you are just starting out, you can educate yourself by watching how-to videos online provided by a reputable manufacturer.

What is on the horizon for your indus-try? I think polished concrete will contin-ue to become popular in the future for both residential and commercial jobs. KDA Custom Floor Co. specializes in the in-stallation of stained concrete flooring, ep-oxy flooring and prefinished hardwood flooring for commercial, residential, interior and exterior projects. –ab

A KDA Custom Floor Co. crew member does a stained concrete project.


On Mar. 31, members of American Institute of Architects (AIA) Cor-pus Christi Chapter and Associat-

ed General Contractors (AGC) South Tex-as Chapter met up for their annual get-together at Hoegemeyer’s BBQ Barn. –cw

Barbecue bonanza

Hector Berrios, Richter Architects, Debbie Montez, executive director, AIA-CCand Victor Cruz, Lamarr Womack & Associates

Jay Porterfield and Frank Reyna, Solka, Nava, Torno and Victor Cruz,Lamarr Womack & Associates

Debbie Schibi, executive director, AGC, with Sam Beecroft, Beecroft

Construction

Texas leaders take the reins

The Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America held its 96th an-nual convention, 360 Degrees of

Construction, Mar. 18-20 in San Juan, Puerto Rico at the Puerto Rico Conven-tion Center. At the convention’s officer installa-tion dinner, Texas found representation at the national level of the association in two of its three highest offices. Chuck Greco, chairman of The Lin-beck Group, was installed as the presi-dent of AGC of America for 2015. Though the general contracting company is headquartered in Houston, Greco is based in San Antonio, his hometown. Lin-beck also has an office in Fort Worth. “Thirty-six years ago when I started my career with Linbeck, I never imagined that one day I would be serving as presi-dent of the Association General Contrac-tors of America,” stated Greco. “During the course of my career, I had countless opportunities to observe just what a pos-itive impact the association had on our business and our industry. And more of-ten than not, those benefits were the product of years of work by involved con-tractors and association staff. Clearly, AGC was the place where people were fighting to improve the industry’s future. That is why the theme for my tenure as your president will be ‘AGC today for a better industry tomorrow.’” Art Daniel, president and COO of AR Daniel Construction Services in Cedar Hill, TX, was installed as vice president of AGC of America for 2015. The family-owned contracting company does high-way and utility construction in Texas and surrounding states. South Texas AGC Executive Director Debbie Schibi attended the convention, along with her husband, Charles Schibi, Apex Engineers, and Sam Beecroft, Shannon Reynolds and Mike Munoz, all of Beecroft Construction. “Every year I have the opportunity to meet with the top leaders in our industry at the annual AGC of America Conven-tion,” Debbie Schibi says. “The current national efforts, led by these profession-als, help me better understand and ad-dress issues facing AGC of America and our local chapter.

“With growing workforce shortages, and efforts to help companies succeed in an ever-changing economic and political environment, the Convention creates an avenue to come along side one another with determined goals.” Events included a prayer breakfast, student chapters annual meeting and luncheon, the Education and Research Foundation Board of Directors luncheon, a luncheon for spouses and guests, Cele-brate Construction Night, the AGC-Willis Construction Safety Program, a board of governors luncheon and several educa-tional sessions. “Convention can feel like a whirlwind of activity,” Schibi says. “The days start early at 7am and sessions are packed with education and industry insight, profes-sional development and the best of the best in building and safety awards. These few days prepare me for the future of our industry.” –mh/cw

Debbie and Charles Schibi

Sam Beecroft takes part in the executive leadership roundtable discussion.

Mike Munoz (plaid shirt) learns about contractor’s marketing.

Art Daniel takes the podium after accepting the position of vice president of AGC of

America for 2015.

Chuck Greco (right) accepts the position of president of AGC of America for 2015 at the

convention’s officer installation dinner.

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Round-UpSubmissions

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charge, as space allows. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

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Round-Up

Association CalendarContent submitted by Associations to Construction News

AGC- Corpus Christi

Associated General Contractors

May 7-8: AGC/TBB Texas Safety MeetingMay 15: AGC/AIA-CC Golf Tournament, 11am; Northshore Country Club, Port-land, TX

AGC- RGVAssociated General Contractors

May 8: Golf tournament, 11am; Tierra Santa, Weslaco

AIA - Corpus ChristiAmerican Institute of Architects

May 1: Artwalk booth, downtown, Cor-pus ChristiMay 12: Lunchtime CEU at Silverado Steakhouse, 4522 Weber Rd. Presenter is Robert SontagMay 15: AGC/AIA-CC Golf Tournament, 11am; Northshore Country Club, Port-land, TXMay 19: Chapter meeting, Water Street Seafood Company, 5:30pm

AIA - LGRVAmerican Institute of Architects

May 1: Golf Tournament, 12-6pm; Shary Municipal Golf Course, Mission, TX

NAWIC - Corpus ChristiNat’l Assn. of Women in Construction

May 19: National Association of Women in Construction Dinner Business Meeting, public welcome, The BBQ Man Restau-rant, 5:30pm networking, 6pm meeting. Program - CAD winners presentation. $20. Contact Vickie Thompson 361-299-6278 or 361-438-0593, to get more info check out nawic.org ornawiccorpuschristi.org

RCATRoofing Contractors Assn. of Texas

May 2: 12th annual Fishing Tournament, Woody’s Sport Center, Port Aransas. 6am start.

SCTMCSafety Council of TX Mid Coast

May12-15: OSHA #521, Occupational Safety and Health Guide to Industrial Hy-giene. For more information, contact Betty Birdwell at 361-552-7823.

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2300 Frio City Rd. 210-927-2727 www.monterreyiron.com

A feather in their cap

For almost 30 years, the Victoria Communications Services (VCS) Companies in Victoria have provid-

ed a variety of private and commercial services to the area. Founded by Jennifer and Jim Hart-man in 1985, the company now has a new accolade to add to the list of services it provides. Recently, the company was named a Certified Contractor Program by Leviton Network Solutions – the closest contrac-tor with this certification previously could only be found by going to San Antonio, Houston or Austin. “This is big news for our area,” says Lynda Parma, marketing and public rela-tions coordinator. VCS Companies includes Victoria Communication Services, VCS Security Systems, Infiniti Communications Tech-nologies (ICT), and Rocket Oilfield Ser-vices. ICT offers network design and maintenance, computer services, net-work cabling and more.

“We service an area of 19,000 square miles and no job is too big or too small,” Parma says. “Our success is measured by our customers that have been with us since 1985 and those joining us today.” The Hartman family, now with son J.R. Hartman Jr. and daughter Kelly Henke, are well known in the communi-ty. Their Christian values and civic beliefs define the family. “God is first,” Parma says. “It’s a Chris-tian-based company that is heavily in-volved in the community. They believe in giving back and they have taught us to give back.” As a company, there are numerous events to celebrate employees, including honoring veterans, milestone birthday parties, the occasional family day and regular potlucks. VCS Companies is currently building an office building and a parts and service department at 302 Kehr Blvd. in Victoria to house the various aspects of the com-pany. –cw

A new office building will soon open to house the VCS Companies.

Raba Kistner Infra-structure Inc. (RKI) has announced the hire of Donald A. Peterson, PE, as se-nior project man-ager II. With more than 28 years and $741 million in ex-perience in high-way design and construction, Peterson will be responsible for all areas of project operations for assigned projects, includ-ing construction inspection and material testing operations., to ensure compli-ance with project plans, approved shop/working drawings, and specifications. He will have a special focus on South Texas energy sector roadway reconstruction projects for TxDOT. Previously, Peter-son had an almost 30 year career with TxDOT. He has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Johnny Gutierrez and Hugo Arenas work for Red Roof Hotels,handling the chain’s renovations. –cw

UpgradesConstruction News JOB SIGHT

Only Bubba knowsConstruction News JOB SIGHT

Ron Dorrell and Jamie Bryan with Buffalo Construction supervise the building of a Bubba’s 33 in Corpus Christi. What does the “33” stand for? You’ll have to ask Bubba! –cw


continued from Page 1 — Antz glance

continued from Page 1 — A bright reflection

Structural Steel ProductsPipe, Tubing, Plate & SheetsMetal Building MaterialsOrnamental Iron & AccessoriesCast Iron SpearsFittingsDecorative Castings & DesignsWeldersWelding Supplies & AccessoriesPower ToolsAbrasivesShop & Safety SuppliesPaint & MachineryTrailer ProductsAccess Control ProductsGate & Door HardwareGate Operators–Farm/Ranch Residential/Commercial

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Pipe BollardsPrecut – Painted

6-5/8” OD X .188 wall X 7 Ft

is fine for some circumstances,” he says. “Our service is more about finding ways to customize a fence line for the owner and the specific conditions.” They also brainstorm ways to solve common problems with fences, such as creeks or drainages. The company mostly handles rural ranch work, but also provides fencing for commercial customers. Typically, they have four to five employees, in addition to themselves. Bart and his wife moved closer to his family in Karnes City in 2007. They have two children, Marshall and Lauren, ages

10 and 8. Bart was an off shore commer-cial diver while starting his brush clearing business during his time off and then lat-er became a full time business owner, starting Cut Antz with Brad and Billi. Brad and Billi spent some time travel-ing around before settling in her family’s home area. The couple went to Alaska for a time before coming here and setting up shop. This month, Brad and Billi will add to their family when their daughter is born, their first child. For entertainment, the families enjoy skeet/target shooting, outdoor recre-ation and, of course, barbecuing. –cw

At the Associated Builders and Con-tractors (ABC) National Excellence in Construction Awards in Fort

Lauderdale, FL, several members of the South Texas Chapter were named as win-ners at the association’s highest level of recognition. The South Texas Chapter was also honored with a membership award for chapter growth. –mh

South Texas for the win!

Excellence in Construction, Eagle Winner: Tropical Texas Behavioral Health Harlingen FacilitySpawGlass

On the right:Excellence in Construction, Pyramid Winner: University of Texas-Pan American Executive

Tower Renovation Alpha Building Corporation

and we plotted the pros and cons of starting my own business. My dad is a great motivator. It’s a gift that he gave me.” Evins Glass Service does 50 percent commercial work, with 25 percent auto and 25 percent residential. Some of the company’s larger recent projects have been the new dining hall at Texas A&M Corpus Christi ($380,000) and the new Cosmopolitan Apartments still under construction in downtown ($300,000). Safety is of utmost importance to Evins. The employees meet bi-weekly for safety meetings and the company has not had a reportable in ten years.

His 25-year-old son, Christopher, is currently working his way up through the ranks and he also has a daughter and a younger son. He and his wife, Colleen, have been married for 30 years. “She is the secret to my success,” he says. He says the most exciting thing is not how well his company is doing, but how well the city of Corpus Christi is doing. He bristles when anyone talks down about the city he loves. “It is exciting to see that we finally have a city where you want to raise your kids and they want to stay,” he says. “The future is so bright.” –cw

Associated General Contractors (AGC) Rio Grande Valley smoked up the Valley with the yummy

smells of barbecue at its 5th annual Fajita Cook-off and Spring Membership mixer Apr. 9. The event was held at the South Texas AD8 facilities in Harlingen. Con-grats to the winners! –cw

Fajitas1st Place: Terracon Consultants Inc.2nd Place: Raba-Kistner Consultants

Salsa1st Place: GP7 Construction2nd Place: CAPA

Beans a la Charra1st Place: Terracon Consultants Inc.2nd Place: L&G Concrete Construction

Pan de Campo1st Place: Aquaworks Pipe & Supply2nd Place: Southern Shingles

Chicken1st Place: SpawGlass Constractors2nd Place: Terracon Consultants Inc.

People’s Choice: GP7 ConstructionPeople’s Choice Raffle: Carmen Perez Garcia LRGV-AIA

Come and get it!

1st Place Fajitas

1st Place Salsa

People’s Choice

1st Place Pan de Campo

1st Place Beans a la Charra

1st Place Chicken


continued from Page 1 — Headline

Several South Texas crafts students recently took part in a SkillsUSA Championship Contest in Corpus

Christi Mar. 26-27. SkillsUSA competitions reward stu-dents for excellence, involve industry in directly evaluating student performance and keep training relevant to employers’ needs, according to their website. Students who are awarded gold medals in their category advance to na-tional competition. From Harlingen, Juan Torres, a student at Harlingen High School, was awarded gold in the catego-ry of masonry. –cw

Instilling skills

For welding/art sculpture, students demonstrate their ability to design and

produce a sculpture of that design.

In the masonry category, students construct a composite brick & block project with the emphasis on quality workmanship.

Students competing in electrical construction wiring compete in conduit bendingand hands-on installation of a conduit system.

Judges take a look at contestants’ entries in the welding fabrication category where a team of three students builds a designed project from supplied materials.

MUSTANG COLT SERVICESServing Customers HonestlyElectrical Contracting • Commercial/Industrial

Special Projects

San Antonio, TX 210 494 7100Weslaco, TX 956 969 5703

Painting a picture

Joe Solis Jr. and his crew are ready to get to work on your business or home.

It all started as a summer job doing painting, but it’s grown into much more than that, says Joe Solis Jr., own-

er of ABC Painting and Drywall LLC in Corpus Christi. He started the business in 1988 and says business has been good ever since. “In my lifetime, I’d say I’ve done well over a 1,000 homes,” Solis says. “What started as a painting summer job has be-come my life’s work. After years of man-aging and running my company, I started hiring more painters and helpers. At one time I had 10 guys working for me.” Solis does residential and commer-cial work. “As a commercial painting contrac-tor, my team has worked on many com-mercial projects throughout the Corpus Christi area and surrounding counties,” he says. “I have worked for local commer-cial sites, Denny’s, Montana Mikes, Mira-dor Retirement and other larger scale sites such as the Bank of America, Com-pass Bank and others.” Solis says it is important that his cus-tomers witness his work ethic. “I have worked all of my life to be the

best at what I do and my customers can see that in me,” he says. “They appreciate that me and my crew will all go above and beyond their expectations. No job is too small to get proper attention. And no job is so big that it can’t be done right the first time. If a site needs repairs before paint can be applied, it gets done.” Solis believes community involve-ment, especially with youth, is important. The company sponsors a local youth football league and brought the team, the Cowboys, to win the 2015 “Super Bowl.” Solis also belongs to the Optimist Club of Downtown Corpus Christi. “A company is only as good as its customers say it is,” Solis says. “If it wasn’t for my customers and all the opportuni-ties they have given me, to paint their homes or businesses, I wouldn’t be where I am now.” –cw ABC Painting and Drywall offers dry-wall repair, residential interior and exterior painting, commercial painting, pressure washing, deck and fence staining, alumi-num siding painting and getting rid of those pesky popcorn ceilings.

of the bay. The park includes 35-foot-tall wind turbines along the waterfront designed to produce energy that goes back into the grid. The wind turbines are also a form of kinetic art, with sculptural quali-ties derived from the shape and colors of conch shells that expresses the city's dis-tinctive setting on the bay. The turbines will serve as iconic landmarks on the wa-terfront while providing renewable ener-gy to the park. The introduction of wind power production also makes a cultural and historical connection by harnessing potentially harmful winds. A bond approved by voters in 2008 paid for the project. Challenges included re-routing traffic on the heavily traveled Shoreline Blvd. during construction. The project included reducing three lanes to two lanes in each direction and the realignment of northbound Shore-line Blvd traffic lanes. The realignment

begins near Furman Ave and Buford St and continues north until the lanes merge near William St. The new Shore-line Blvd realignment provides a large pedestrian area connected to the water, McGee Beach and the Coopers Alley L-Head. A key feature of the park is an inter-active fountain that attracts children and families. Parents can sit at the adjacent cafe in the park, protected from the wind with glass windscreens, while watching their children play in the fountain. The cafe is shaded by fabric stretched be-tween posts, while groves of palms and mesquite trees will grow over time to provide shady spots in the park. An arbor is designed to support colorful Bougain-villea planting that shades a walkway leading to the fountain. The arbor fronts an area identified for a future restaurant, which was included in the design to acti-vate and program the park. –cw

The park is designed to be a special place to enjoy the local area’s abundant charm.


A MOTHER'S LOVE is like an island In life's ocean vast and wide, A peaceful, quiet shelter From the restless, rising tide ... A MOTHER'S LOVE is like a fortress And we seek protection there When the waves of tribulation Seem to drown us in despair ... A MOTHER'S LOVE'S a sanctuary Where our souls can find sweet rest From the struggle and the tension Of life's fast and futile quest ... A MOTHER'S LOVE is like a tower Rising far above the crowd,

Happy Mother’s Day!And her smile is like the sunshine Breaking through a threatening cloud ... A MOTHER'S LOVE is like a beacon Burning bright with FAITH and PRAYER, And through the changing scenes of life We can find a HAVEN THERE ... For a MOTHER'S LOVE is fashioned After God's enduring love, It is endless and unfailing Like the love of HIM above ...

For God knew in HIS great wisdom That HE couldn't be EVERYWHERE So HE put HIS LITTLE CHILDREN In a LOVING MOTHER'S CARE.

Author: Helen Steiner Rice

South Texas Construction News Editor Cyndi Wright and siblings with their mother,Nancy Diane Dobbs, in 1963.

Stephanie Rendon, Terracon, front, far right, with her mother, Christine Rendon in back of her and her grandmother, Teresa Rendon, next to her. Also pictured, front, far left, aunt

Argentina Rendon Guerra and back, left, sister Annie Rendon Wolfe.

Stephany Chacon, Terracon,and her mother,

Elizabeth A. Abrego

Jorge Flores, Terracon, with his mother,Maria Ramona Flores

Associated General Contractors (AGC) South Texas Chapter executive director Debbie Schibi with her mother,

Rachel Marrs.

Carlo Hernandez, AC-I Service Air Conditioning & Heating: Manuela Hernandez

Christopher Albright, Terracon, with his mother, Sharon Albright.

Sylvia Quinones, Terracon, and her mother,Blanca Gonzalez

On the left:Elizabeth Cantu, Briggs Equipment, with her mother and hero, Jacoba Cantu.

Brandon Rees, CMC Rebar: Irma Rees

Billi Rue, Cut Antz Land Improvement LLC, with her mother, Cam Homeyerand her children on Easter 1981.

construction · and selective brush cutting. “what makes us different is we go in ... back row,...

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