Miller Stauch Construction shares love for KC, HQ projects

Miller Stauch Construction is currently working with Schier Products to build their new office headquarters at the corner of Woodland Drive and Shawnee Mission Parkway in Shawnee Mission, Ks.

The 52,000 SF building will include a combined office and warehouse space for the grease interceptor manufacturer's approximate 50 employees, who will be moving into their new state-of-the-art headquarters, designed by GBA, upon completion later this year.

But that's not the only office headquarters project Miller Stauch has working in KC.

First Heritage Bank and doorLink Manufacturing will also move into new office headquarters later this year, thanks to Miller Stauch, who is about to reach a milestone century of working in KC.

“Miller Stauch Construction has been building Kansas City for over 95 years. We love Kansas City and are proud to do our part to establish new homes for our clients,” said Grace Elmore, marketing manager for Miller Stauch.

First Heritage Bank, who currently has five locations in Kansas, is working with Miller Stauch and

Davidson Architecture & Engineering, to build their newest branch in the heart of Lenexa, Ks. The new HQ location includes 5,500 SF of space and will house the bank’s commercial banking division.

Residential and commercial door manufacturer, doorLink Manufacturing, will be moving into their new headquarters later this year as well. The new space includes 240,000 SF of office, manufacturing and distribution space in Riverside, Mo.

"Kansas City is rapidly growing and is making a name for itself on the national stage. Companies are planting their roots here, which is exciting to both participate in and experience,” said Greg Dean, director of business development for Miller Stauch.

Miller Stauch is an expert in the retail, office and industrial markets and has completed several similar projects in Kansas City over the years. This includes an 80,000 SF industrial office building for North American Safety Valve, completed in 2018.

"GBA has worked with Miller Stauch Construction for 35 years on many successful projects in the industrial/manufacturing sector. We truly enjoy the long-term partnership among their team and ours," Craig Rogge, principal for the GBA buildings group, said.

Martin City Brewing Co. hops into Lee's Summit

The fourth Martin City Brewing Company (MCBC) location is set to open soon in Lee's Summit, MO.

MCBC Pizza & Taproom - Lee's Summit, located on the north side of Hiway 50 and SW Blue Pkwy in Pine Tree Plaza, will join the existing two locations in Martin City, MO and the pizza and taproom in Mission Farms in Overland Park, KS.

Co-owners Matt Moore and Chance Adams opened their first location, MCBC - The Pub, at 500 E 135th St. in Martin City, MO., in 2011. A few years later in 2014, they opened MCBC Pizza and Taproom, just across the street.

Moore, who grew up in a family-owned restaurant business, said Martin City was the obvious choice for their first location. Moore's family owns two popular Martin City establishments, Jess & Jim's Steak House and Rc's Restaurant & Lounge, so he was - and still is - very familiar with the restaurant business and the area.

"After years of home-brewing and business planning, Chance and I decided to open a brewery in Martin City. Thanks to an enthusiastic community, it wasn’t long until we had a full-blown brewing operation, with canning and distribution throughout the KC metro," Moore said.

In May 2018, MCBC decided to venture over to the Kansas side of the state line, opening MCBC Pizza & Taproom - Mission Farms, in the former Pizzabella restaurant at 4000 Indian Creek Pkwy in Overland Park.

"The building was built out as a pizza establishment already and we saw the need for an approachable dining setting in Mission Farms," Moore said.

Moore, who lives in Lee's Summit with his wife and children, said Lee's Summit seemed like the next logical destination to open the fourth MCBC.

MCBC Pizza & Taproom - Lee's Summit is located in a stand-alone building which was previously leased out for seasonal retail. The 6,000 SF building is double the size of the Mission Farms location.

Besides a wide selection of their own craft beers, the Pizza & Taprooms regularly offer a handful of MCBC beers that typically are not distributed or available elsewhere. Moore also plans to serve a nice selection of other beer, wine and "sangria on tap" at the new location as well as their known-to-be-delicious stone, wood-fire pizzas and other family-friendly menu items.

The MCBC in Lee's Summit will not be their last location, according to Moore.

"We do plan to add more locations in the KC metro in the future, as brewery expansion is on the rise," Moore said.

MCBC volumed 10,000 barrels in 2019, with beer in approximately 200 retail locations across Kansas to the Colorado line and the entire KC metro on the Missouri side.

This year MCBC released a total of 20 “bigger, bolder, local beers,” including Double Sacred Hardway, Alchemy Coffee Stout, Violet Carson Rose' Ale and Brooo Milk Chocolate Stout. A popular seasonal brew, Donut Stout, will be released next month.

Moore plans to open in Lee's Summit on Wed., October 30th, with bands each Friday and Saturday night, beginning the first weekend of November.

Other retailers in Pine Tree Plaza include Krab Kingz Seafood, Harbor Freight, Planet Fitness, Chuck's Boots and The Smoothie Shop.

Kelly Construction Group expands reach, builds new headquarters

The Great Recession may have dried up projects and forced many general contractors out of business, but it also created an opportunity for Scott Kelly, Jason Betts and Travis Lourens. The trio worked together before the downturn and were determined to leverage their respective expertise and positive relationships into a new, diverse construction company.

“Things started slowing down and the economy slowed to the point that you had to recreate your business a bit and make sure you were staying in relationship with your clients,” said Scott Kelly, president of Kelly Construction Group, Inc. “So we started talking about how we could take our existing customer base, maintain those relationships and work through a difficult time with the expectation it was going to pick back up.”

The former colleagues launched Kelly Construction Group in 2011, blending Scott’s healthcare expertise with Travis’ municipal and government experience and Jason’s book of business that included developers, retailers and hospitality groups. That decision has paid off, with 2 million square feet currently under construction and the company on target to reach its most recent five-year master plan goals in half the time.

“Establishing and maintaining and nurturing relationships, that’s the key. We’re not going to be everything to everyone, but our company is the right size for a lot of projects—not too small but not too big,” Lourens said. “We are schedule driven and we expect people who work for us to be part of our team and be committed to the same goals.”

Kelly Construction has landed projects for top companies such as Cerner, KCP&L, Merck and UMB, as well as just about every metro-area hospital group including Saint Luke’s Health System, KU Medical Center, Shawnee Mission Medical Center, Children’s Mercy Hospital, and HCA.

In the past two years, Kelly Construction has almost doubled its headcount to 36, prompting it to build a new 20,000-square foot corporate office in Grandview’s SouthPointe Business Park. Recent projects include the conversion of 650,000 square feet of office space for Cerner in South Kansas City, more than 250,000-square feet of tenant improvements for Lee’s Summit’s Summit Technology Campus, and a new parking garage for Shawnee Mission Medical Center, as well as the upscale The Monarch Bar on the Country Club Plaza.

“The Monarch was the first notable project for this type of venue in many years that wasn’t a chain. It’s more of a boutique, standalone space with high-end finishes,” Betts said. “The architect (David Manica) had a vision and he felt we understood that vision.”

Maintaining client relationships has been key to Kelly’s success. With the construction market sizzling, the company remembers the lessons of the past and is focused on smart, controlled growth.

“One of the biggest things we talk about is making sure we meet or exceed expectations on any project. That’s our focus,” Kelly said. “We don’t aspire to be the biggest firm. We want to be known for doing what we say we’re going to do and where we can still feel like one of the three of us has given personal attention to every project we build.”

Above: Kelly Construction Group principals include Travis Lourens, Jason Betts and Scott Kelly. 

Catching up with 2018 CREW KC President Debbie Swearingen

Debbie Swearingen is approaching the midway point of her tenure as 2018 president of CREW KC, an organization that works to advance the success of women in commercial real estate. The VP of commercial banking for Community America Credit Union updated MetroWire Media on key initiatives and the year so far.

MWM: What kind of changes are taking place at CREW KC on your watch?

Swearingen: This year we did a true strategic plan. In our first meeting, we talked about vision and where we wanted the organization to go. We are focusing on four main areas of programming, membership, communications, and community connections. 

MWM: How are you changing CREW KC programming?

Swearingen: We want to resonate in the industry with great programs that bring value to our members but also support our community. In April, our quarterly luncheon covered development and history around the Troost corridor, so we are holding programs that elevate what our community is about by looking at our history, present day and future.

MWM: CREW KC is typically viewed as a networking organization for women. How do you see that changing?

Swearingen: Another goal for this year is to build and retain a diverse membership with an emphasis on key decision makers. We are working to increase diversity by gender, age and race while growing our presence throughout the community. A lot of people don't know what we are all about so we are working to improve our branding and become more well known in the community.

MWM: How do you measure success?

Swearingen: One of our strategic goals for this year is to build meaningful and purposeful relationships, both personal and professional. Being a member of CREW KC isn't necessarily about the business you get but also about personal growth and building relationships. That's important for achieving balance.

MWM: What do you hope people remember about your year as CREW KC president?

Swearingen: I wanted to put the fun back into CREW so we also remember what we are here for. When you do that, business comes. We've added lot of new activities for members and prospective members, including taking a party bus to FunkyTown, networking at Chicken N Pickle and a casino night hosted by BHC Rhodes for recruiting new members. We're doing things a bit differently to get to know people on a more personal level.

Five minutes with Valbridge President Laird Goldborough

Over the past decade, Valbridge Property Advisors in Kansas City has enjoyed double digit growth and seen its staff double in size. Formerly Shaner Appraisals, the company rebranded in 2013 and founded national firm Valbridge Property Advisors. The move led to access to national clients and a 20 percent uptick in customer growth over the past five years. MetroWire Media caught up with Valbridge President Laird Goldborough for insight into the Kansas City market and a look at what's ahead for the company.  

MWM: How did your 2013 founding of Valbridge change Shaner Appraisals?

Goldsborough: We shifted to a national platform. Shaner Appraisals, Inc. was a local company, and we now have national reach as well as access to larger corporate clients. In Kansas City, we were a dominant firm but were not nationally recognized. Now as Valbridge, we have a bigger seat at the table.

MWM: Some are predicting a market slowdown in 2019. What are you seeing?

Goldsborough: I am more optimistic. Kansas City is a low beta market, so there are not a lot of swings. The coasts tend to move up or down before we do. The number of construction cranes is crazy in Kansas City. Single-family is very active, and in the short term the only thing that may start affecting the velocity is an interest rate hike. I don’t really see a major slowdown any time soon. I have not seen any product that has ceased building. It’s been a nice run and cycles do end, but I don’t see the end in the near term.

MWM: You’re celebrating five years as Valbridge, but you’ve been around much longer than that. How has your leadership changed and how will it continue to evolve?

Goldsborough: This is the 40th anniversary of Shaner Appraisals, founded by Bernie Shaner. I purchased the company from Bernie, but he remains very active. We just announced the next generation of leadership with the appointments of Daniel Kann and Jason Roos to Managing Directors. These guys have done everything right. They work hard and are very smart, and we are happy to have them lead the firm into the future.

MWM: How is your role at VPA changing?

Goldsborough: I am seeing my role shift a bit toward mentoring, and I really love coaching and bringing people up through the system. I am a graduate of the HEMP program (Helzberg Entrepreneurial Mentoring Program), and it is all about giving back and mentoring the next generation. After graduating from that program, this succession planning makes a lot of sense.

Valbridge Property Advisors Principals Bernie Shaner and Laird Goldsborough have announced a new succession plan for leadership that promotes Daniel Kann and Jason Roos to Managing Directors. Pictured above: Bernie Shaner, Daniel Kann, Jason Roos, Laird Goldsborough