Jun. 9—TRAVERSE CITY — One of northern Michigan's largest construction companies is now employee-owned, and joining the same corporate family as one of its major competitors.
Team Elmer's announced an employee-owned company acquired it on June 1, with the paving and excavation company to remain independently operated, according to the release. Company President Troy Broad called it a transition for the future that shows its commitment to its employees, and one that ensures the same level of service to its customers.
"We are excited to see Team Elmer's continuing to operate independently for many more years to the benefit of both our customers and our new employee owners," Broad said in a statement.
Company spokeswoman Tonya Wildfong said in an email that she, Broad and Vice President Todd Broad will continue in their current roles, as will the rest of Team Elmer's employees.
"We are excited to include our employees in the future growth of the company," she said. "We will continue with the same commitment to quality and integrity in our industry."
Those customers include various local governments, county road commissions and the Michigan Department of Transportation, with the company landing contracts for numerous road projects in the region, as previously reported. Recent repaving work on U.S. 31 and Division Street is one of many examples.
The acquisition places Team Elmer's in the same corporate family as Rieth-Riley Construction Company, a Goshen, Indiana-based paving company with locations around Indiana and Michigan, including Manistee and Grawn, according to the release and information from Rieth-Riley Construction.
It's not uncommon for the two companies to submit competing bids for big-budget projects, Grand Traverse County Road Commission Managing Director Brad Kluczynski said. He was still learning the details of Team Elmer's corporate move, and wondered what will happen for future bidding requests.
"So does it end up meaning that one of them bids on a project and the other does not? I don't know," he said. "Do they both bid, and if so are they still bidding competitively or are they just doing it to say, yes they both bid on it."
A question submitted to Team Elmer's about competitive bidding received no response by Friday afternoon, and a message was left with Rieth-Riley Construction Thursday.
While the details remain to be seen, other companies are already stepping up to compete on certain types of projects, Kluczynski said. Molon Excavating, for example, has been increasing its capacity lately and owns its own asphalt plant, although it remains much smaller than either Team Elmer's or Rieth-Riley Construction. And bids for certain projects like resurfacing work involving federal aid are already fairly tight.
Traverse City is another frequent client of Team Elmer's — city Engineer Tim Lodge declined to comment on the acquisition and what it could mean for bids on future projects.