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CONSTRUCTION
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The Industry’s Newspaper Bee County Courthouse, Beeville
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(210) 308-5800
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Volume 3
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Number 3
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MARCH 2015
Mill skill
Supplies for South Texas
Quality workmanship is still the standard at The Hoffman Company. L-R: Mark Salinas, Mark Mills, Luis Gutierrez, Richard Moran
L-R: Carlos Gutierrez, Kirk Bell, Tim Stephens, Jason Gutierrez and Steve Bradshaw are ready to help customers at Johnstone Supply in Corpus Christi.
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rchitectural woodworking company The Hoffman Company has deep roots in Corpus Christi. Started in 1945 by A.J. Hoffman, the company has been directed by the male Hoffman line, with A.J.’s son Bud Hoffman as president after A.J.’s death in 1969 to Bryan Hoffman, Bud’s son who has been in charge since 1987. And now, Bryan’s son, Chad Hoffman, who lives and works in the Austin area, is also involved in the business. Things have changed in the industry over the years, according to Bryan. “From the 1920s through the 1950s, millwork companies produced everything, including moldings, cabinetry, windows, doors and paneling,” he says.
“From the 1960s forward, many companies began specializing in each individual category. Our company is one of a few who remains as a full production mill.” The Hoffman Company is only one in a handful that still covers that broad spectrum of work. “We think our contractors like to have a one-stop shop,” he says. There’s a full mill on site, but the company is anything but run-of-the-mill. The product is of the highest quality. “Our reputation is built and maintained on our quality of work,” Bryan says. “We are more towards the higher end. That’s our expertise.” continued on Page 14
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hen Tim Stephens made a major career change and took over Johnstone Supply from his father, Ted, it turned out to be an auspicious move for him and the business. His father bought the location in Corpus Christi in 1974. At that time, it was called Airtrol Supply Inc. and had been in business since 1947. In 1984, Ted joined Johnstone Supply, a business that started in Portland, OR in 1953. This provided better buying power and allowed him to compete with the larger regional and national competitors. Meanwhile, Tim, who grew up in Corpus Christi, had graduated from Texas A&M with a degree in engineering and also from Arizona State University with a
degree in civil engineering. When his father decided to retire and offered the business to Tim, he and his wife, Holly, decided to take a chance. Since that time, Tim has opened an additional five locations of Johnston Supply in Corpus Christi, Victoria, Pharr, Brownsville and La Feria. It was challenging at first. “Our long standing customers would say, ‘You don’t do things like your dad,’ but times change,” Tim says. “Now, there is a good mixture of young employees who are tech savvy and older employees who know the parts.” The business supplies AC/refrigeration service companies and works with continued on Page 14
Getting students fired up
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hen the City of Corpus Christi needed to replace Fire Station #5, which had fallen into disrepair and was undersized, there was a hurdle to be jumped. The new station needed to remain in the same geographical location to service the existing community, but the city was not having much luck finding a property that could accommodate the needed access of fire equipment and personnel. Enter the Corpus Christi Independent School District, which owned property adjacent to one of its high schools, where an abandoned two-story building, previously utilized as the old high school, was standing. The property was large enough to house a new fire station and, with a little planning ingenuity, a second building, a joint use facility, could be erected as well, says Dave Alexander, who along with wife, Kacy, owns Safenet
The new fire station fits in with the city’s aesthetics, boasting a mural of fire fighters and a wave of water on one side. To the left is the joint use facility where students from CCISD will be able to learn fire fighting skills.
Services LLC, the general contractor on the $2 million project. The joint use facility contains a classroom available for use by CCISD high school students who want to study fire science. “By determining a curriculum adaptable to CCISD students and the fire fighters, this second building could allow each party to gain valuable student and training space,” Alexander says. “The City could lease the property for minimal costs, the school district gains new student space, and the neighborhood acquires a shining example of modern architecture.” Fire chief Robert Rocha aims to start recruiting students for the program this spring. “The building allows us to complete these lofty goals we have to capture students at a young age,” Rocha says. “They continued on Page 14