Nashville Strong

How Certified Construction Services helped Church & Union a Music City landmark

When “Top Chef” star Jamie Lynch and the restaurant team The 5th Street Group initially were planning their new restaurant that recently opened in Nashville, they called on Certified Construction Services and The Bradley Projects to design and construct a dynamic, lively dining experience.

Together, Certified Construction Services and The Bradley Projects completed a space that radiates energy and celebrates the sense of community that stems from the space. Brought to you by the team from 5Church Charlotte, La Belle Helene Charlotte, 5Church Charleston and Tempest Charleston, Church and Union sits in the heart of Downtown Nashville on 4th Avenue between Church and Union Streets. Offering a casual, yet refined dining experience with a sophisticated ambiance, the restaurant’s goal is to give the people of Music City the best in food, ambiance and service. We sat down with Scott DeLano, Principal of Certified Construction Services, to get his take on helping building a community vibe, the growing Nashville construction scene and why Church & Union is just the start.

Give us a snapshot of your brand?

Our brand is built around people: The members of our company as well as those in the community who are impacted by our work. We enhance built environments while staying mindful of our short- and long-term impact on tenants and the surrounding communities we serve. Our team believes in creating clean, modern, and crisp concepts that celebrate local communities and showcase architecture as an art form. Through our vertically-integrated approach, we design, build and develop our own projects, in addition to working for clients who share our appreciation for thoughtful and progressive design. Certified Construction Services is the commercial general contractor component of this vertical integration.

What was the inspiration behind that concept?

We draw inspiration from Nashville’s rich culture. The city’s tourist attractions are great, but we’ve come to love Nashville for the small businesses, lively neighborhoods, and people we encounter every day. We’re passionate about focusing on urban areas, especially in traditionally underserved communities, and providing opportunities for economic growth through our projects. We truly want to serve others and provide places that allow people to thrive and prosper in a sense of community.

What type of consumer are you targeting?

We target a broad range of consumers who seek community-oriented projects through our work in the multifamily, institutional, and hospitality sectors. We partner with clients who appreciate our hands-on approach in each project; our vertically-integrated structure provides partners with a wide range of benefits that make us stand out from competitors. Overall, the majority of our projects center on urban infill and improving densely populated urban areas. What kind of conversations are you having with your customers?

As Nashville continues to grow, many businesses are coming into the city from out

of state. We’ve had many conversations with clients about developing projects that maintain their identity while fitting into Nashville’s unique environment. When speaking with clients, we’re also being upfront about our new policies and procedures in the wake of the pandemic, in addition to setting realistic expectations on construction schedules and budgets given the volatility in supply chains and increases in construction material costs.

What adjustments have you made to your business model surrounding the recent state of events?

Nashville’s population boom caused skyrocketing demand for new residential, commercial and retail developments. Our team has navigated the unprecedented obstacles during the pandemic to ensure we can meet the new demand on time and within budget. At a time when construction workers across the country are seeking mobility, opportunity and increased salaries, our leadership ensures that project teams continue to feel valued by being transparent and communicative, in addition to providing clear opportunities for professional development. We make sure our team members know the protocols we’re taking to keep them safe and the context behind our decision-making processes. When times seem dark and uncertain, the best way to raise spirits is to find communities to help by partnering with philanthropic organizations. Investing our focus into these efforts brings a refreshing and uplifting spirit to our teams and the work we do.

How does your restaurant design cater to what today’s consumers want?

As more businesses start to open and residents become more comfortable now that they’re vaccinated, consumers are looking for experiences they cannot replicate in their homes. Experiences that we used to take for granted, like meeting with an old friend or hanging out with a colleague after work, are now opportunities that consumers are craving. We worked alongside The Bradley Projects, our design firm, to ensure Church & Union includes seating arrangements to cater to the various reasons people are excited to go out, whether it’s spontaneously striking up a conversation with a new friend at the bar or getting to know someone more during an intimate date. Additionally, the bold colors and art pieces throughout the space radiate energy throughout the room, further helping the restaurant capture the magic of a night “out on the town.”

Is there a location that really shows how the brand interacts with the community and customers?

The restaurant Church & Union is a great example of how we keep local communities top of mind when constructing new projects. Beyond our food and beverage portfolio, we’re proud to expand our higher-education portfolio with Fisk University and Meharry Medical College in Nashville. We’re working with both clients on multiple projects around their campuses, including medical clinics, classroom space, research and learning laboratories and a new campus center for student career development for Fisk University. These projects are tailored to provide environments for students to learn and grow academically, professionally, and personally throughout their time on these very important campuses. We view projects like these as opportunities to directly invest in the future of Nashville.

Walk us through how and why it was designed the way it is?

Our projects on both campuses celebrate the promise of higher education for underserved communities. We focus on the student experience and promoting learning environments that are both functional and creative. For a current research and science building, we are expanding the facility to include common gathering and learning areas along with an open design that allows the labs and research areas to be open to the public. We feel that these types of opportunities will provide students the chance to observe science happening all around them.

Take us through your construction and design strategy.

By working in a vertically-integrated business structure that combines construction, development and design expertise, we can avoid and overcome the challenges and costs that many traditional projects face. Our design and construction teams work together to provide in-depth cost analyses and value minded alternatives that benefit project budgets and assist with design delivery. We incorporate our subcontractors and suppliers into these meetings to gain their expertise and opinions on materials, systems. and methods that will streamline projects’ design and construction. Finally, we truly listen to our clients and incorporate their needs and ideas into the design so that each project provides an opportunity to showcase their mission and distinct identity into the final product.

Give us a rundown of the market’s layout.

The current growth of the Nashville market is exceptional. Folks have always been attracted to our city for its iconic history, culture, and country music scene, but now it’s becoming a destination for people to live and work. PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Urban Land Institute just reported they believe Nashville will be the hottest housing market in 2022. The city also is attracting the all-important tech sector with Amazon, Facebook and Oracle heavily investing in our area. When so many industries in Nashville are growing, it’s certainly a great asset to have broad experiences in constructing various kinds of projects.

What’s the biggest issue today related to the construction side of the business?

When the pandemic first hit, we had to adjust our policies and procedures on the fly based on the concern of protecting the workforce and still delivering on project commitments. As we have adapted to those challenges with safety protocols, testing and clear communication, we now are shifting our focus to the increasing cost of materials and supply chain challenges that are impacting all of our projects. The fall out of the pandemic has caused unusual spikes in the cost of construction materials and more importantly has caused an overall shortage of equipment and materials needed to complete ongoing projects and start new projects. Our strong relationships with vendors and subcontractors in the Nashville construction market have helped, but we are doubling down on ensuring that we are clearly communicating potential cost impacts and delays to project partners. We also are working with the design teams and vendors to source products that are available and budget friendly during these uncertain times. It’s always been important to maintain strong relationships with vendors, clients and stakeholders, but at a time with more uncertainty than usual, ensuring we’re staying transparent and realistic with our partners has never been more crucial.

Talk about sustainability. What are you doing?

I notice many business leaders talk about sustainability as a separate category, but I view it as a necessity that’s embedded into the foundation of everything we do. Though Nashville’s rapid growth provides a great opportunity for business, it also means that we have to maintain our commitment to reducing our environmental impact. Our projects focus on urban infill and we pride

ourselves on designing and constructing high-density projects with an emphasis on efficient land use. Working closely with our design and construction partners, we focus on adaptive reuse projects and environmentally-friendly materials and products. Many of our multifamily projects include storm-water retention systems, green roof plantings, along with highly-efficient windows, insulation and mechanical systems.

What’s your growth plan?

We have always focused on smart and intentional growth. We focus on our core clients and ensure that we always deliver on our commitments to them—they are the reason we’ve become successful and will continue to be core to our growth. With Nashville’s rapid growth, there are opportunities abound for both design and

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1.800.325.3945 METROCERAMICS.COM construction. We try to remain laser focused on what we do well and target those opportunities with our project resources. We have always viewed profitability over revenue and believe that our selectivity with choosing clients and projects have allowed us to focus on the projects that we really want to be involved with. While much of our recent projects focus on multifamily, hospitality, and institutional learning environments, we are planning on expanding in 2022-2023 into larger mid-rise type projects.

What trends are you seeing?

One of the big trends we’re seeing is the increased demand for amenities in multifamily spaces. The pandemic emphasized outdoor space, gyms and other areas, and now these elements have come to be not a perk but a non-negotiable expectation in newly constructed residential spaces.

What’s the biggest item on your to-do list right now?

With the holidays around the corner, it is to make sure that all of our employees, clients, subcontractors and vendors know how important they are to us and all that we collectively do. We are blessed to have such a great group of partners who we spend our days designing and building some really great projects in the Nashville community with. Once the holiday season is over, our biggest to-do will be supporting our staff and finding that next group of new hires that will make a real difference in our growth and success.

Describe a typical day.

A typical day starts off with me jotting down on a notebook the items that I want to complete for that workday. I do this each morning, as it allows me to start the morning off right and focus on what is important and critical to that day’s success. The rest of the day is

centered on meeting with clients, visiting job sites, and working through the plethora of opportunities and challenges that arise each day. Typically, the day ends with me reviewing my initial list of tasks (and the items that were added during the day) and marking off what was completed and what needs to shift to the next morning. Tell us what makes your brand so unique?

We are incredibly invested in the success of our projects from conception to completion. Even if we are not the primary developer of a project, we pour our hearts into each bit of work we do. Combined with our vertically-integrated model that allows us to handle most, if not all elements of a project, our business provides a unique, personal touch that other firms can’t replicate. Additionally, we treat our subcontractors and suppliers with the same respect and gratitude that we do as our project owners and architects. I emphasize every day to our project teams that we are only as successful as our subcontractors and suppliers and that our priority is to treat them as if they’re one of our own. CK

One-on-One with… Certified Construction Services’ Scott DeLano

What’s the most rewarding part of your job? Relationship building. It is a core element of what I do and what delivers success for our projects and company. This goes well beyond our clients and employees, it’s relationship building for each of our subcontractors, suppliers, and vendors that we partner with to complete our projects.

As we use subcontractors for the majority of work items on our projects, we are solely dependent on the success of our subcontractors and vendors. If they succeed, then we will succeed, and if they fail, then we fail. For that reason, we treat them with the same respect that we treat our clients and ensure that they know how much we appreciate their efforts on our projects. Developing these strong relationships has been vital to our growth and success.

What’s the best advice you ever received? To listen. Take the time to listen to your employees, listen to your clients, and listen to your subcontractors and vendors. There is nothing more important than truly listening to what someone has to say instead of just commanding. The best leaders listen and incorporate those ideas and opinions into overall strategy. Gaining buy-in of employees and project partners is vital to success and will lead to people believing that they are truly a part of a solution.

What’s the best thing a client ever said to you? Very recently, a client introduced me to their sibling at a project meeting. As I was introduced to this person, the client stated, “This is Scott DeLano—his company and people are breathing life back into this university.” This stuck with me because it validates the hard work and dedication that our entire team strives for each day. That, in my mind, is how to measure success.

Name the three strongest traits any leader should have and why. Lead by example. There is nothing that I would ask an employee or project partner to do that I would not do myself.

Listen before you speak. No business leader has all the answers, and taking the time to actually listen to your teams can make a world of difference for the company and for the staff.

Treat others the way you expect to be treated. We treat our employees like family, and we expect them to treat our project partners in the same manner.

How do you like to spend your down time? I like to spend time with my three sons. Two of them are in college, and my oldest son works for us as a field superintendent. Seeing them grow up into adults and seeing how each of them is so different yet so the same is remarkable. They are the true highlight of my life.

What are you going to do once we get back to some sense of normalcy? I understand the urge to be nostalgic for the “before times” given how devastating the pandemic has been, but I have a more forward-looking mindset. COVID has been a difficult, but important opportunity to self-reflect on my life professionally and personally. I’m focused on what can be the new normal.