AGC of California Honors Firms at Annual Awards Program

An Asian elephant exhibit in Santa Barbara and a seismic retrofit of the Golden Gate Bridge were among this year's six winners.

Representing the Constructor Award winning firms and their projects are, from left: James McLamb, Clark Construction Group-California LP (Petco Park project); Paul Wieckowski, Frank Schipper Construction Co. (Santa Barbara Zoo, Asian Elephant Exhibit); Bob Hall, J. R. Roberts Corp. (Sacramento Children's Home-Pat Anderson Education Center); Rick Bishoff, Swinerton Builders (California Theatre project); Nick Jones, Ford Construction Co. Inc. (Jones Tract Emergency Dewatering project); and Rich Zito, Shimmick-Obayashi, a Joint Venture (Golden Gate Bridge, Seismic Retrofit, Phase II, project, south approach structures).

The winning projects, along with all of the Constructor Awards finalists named in this year's competition, were honored on April 9 during the 2005 Awards Banquet and presentation at the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach in Huntington Beach. The event was attended by nearly 200 people from construction firms throughout the state.

AGC also presented its annual achievement awards.

John C. Shimmick of Hayward-based Shimmick Construction Co. Inc. received the Contractor Achievement Award, honoring his more than four decades service and achievement in the industry. Dave Garese of Sacramento-based Excel Bonds & Insurance Services Inc. received the Associate Achievement Award, honoring his extensive career of service to the industry and within AGC.

Each of the winners received a solid bronze sculpture, weighing nearly 6 lbs. and depicting a surveyor with hardhat and transit. The six winners were chosen from a field of 16 finalists. All were spotlighted during the awards evening with each team receiving a finalist plaque recognizing their outstanding efforts in construction. Constructor winners and finalists are all AGC members.

The 2005 Constructor Awards winners and their projects:

• Excellence in Project Management for Projects $5 Million or Below
  
  Frank Schipper Construction Co. for the Santa Barbara Zoo, Asian Elephant Exhibit in Santa Barbara.
  
  Also selected as a finalist in this category was Mitchell Engineering for the Caltrain San Jose Diridon Station in San Jose.
• Excellence in Project Management for Projects Over $5 Million

  Clark Construction Group-California, LP for Petco Park in San Diego.

  Also selected as finalists in this category were Dynalectric for Caltrans District 7 Headquarters, Los Angeles, and McCarthy Building Cos. Inc., for Cesar Chavez Education Center in Oakland.

• o Innovation in Construction Techniques or Materials

  Ford Construction Co. Inc. for Jones Tract Emergency Dewatering in Holt.

  Also selected as finalists in this category were Clark Construction Group for Caltrans district headquarters in downtown Los Angeles and McCarthy Building Cos. Inc. for Woodland Police Headquarters.

• o Contribution to the Community

  Citrus Heights-based J. R. Roberts Corp. for Sacramento Children's Home-Pat Anderson Education Center in Sacramento.

  Also selected as a finalist in this category was the Irvine office of Hensel Phelps Construction Co. for LAUSD Orthopedic Hospital Medical Magnet High School in Los Angeles.

• Meeting the Challenge of the Difficult Job (Builder)

  San Francisco-based Swinerton Builders for the California Theatre in San Jose.

  Also selected as finalists in this category were Foster City-based Rudolph and Sletten for the Stanford Center for Cancer Treatment and Prevention in Stanford and Otto/ARB, a Joint Venture, for the Sacramento International Airport Terminal A Parking Garage in Sacramento.

• Meeting the Challenge of the Difficult Job (Heavy Engineering)

  Shimmick-Obayashi, a Joint Venture, for the Golden Gate Bridge, Seismic Retrofit (Phase 2) project, south approach structures in San Francisco.

  Also selected as finalists in this category were San Francisco-based Miller/Watts Constructors Inc. for Building 64 Repairs and Building 68 Structural Stabilization, Alcatraz Island, and Lodi-based Ford Construction Co. Inc. for the Jones Tract Flood Fight in Holt.

The five sponsoring companies included Excel Bonds & Insurance Services Inc.; Gallagher Construction Services; McGraw-Hill Construction; Nor Cal Leavitt Insurance Services; and Peckar & Abramson, L.C.

This year's judges included Stephen Castellanos, FAIA, and the 2005 president of the American Institute of Architects, California Council; Michael Viola, building division vice chair and president of Viola Inc. of Oxnard; Greg Reed, joint engineering division vice chair and title-here of Western States Surfacing Inc., Modesto; Stephen Matich, AGC joint engineering division board of directors and title here of San Bernardino-based Matich Corp.; Randy Douglas, 2005 awards committee chair and title here of Goleta-based Tierra Contracting Inc.; Bill Wallace, 2005 awards committee vice chair and title here of Oakland-based Daily Construction Service/Reed Construction Data Oakland; and Dave Garese, awards committee of Excel Bonds & Insurance Services Inc.