R.D. Olson Construction Makes Moves on the Top 400 Contractors List
May 29, 2018 – Engineering News Record - May 2018
Irvine, CA – Thanks to our associate's continued dedication to excellence, we once again were able to make 2018 ENR (Engineering News-Record) Top 400 Contractors List. This award is a great measure of the success R.D. Olson has seen in the last few years and exemplifies the organization’s continuous pursuit of top notch service and quality projects in the hospitality, restaurant, multi-family, retail and entertainment sectors. We charted at #325 up from last year's #338 position and we know 2019 holds bigger and better things. You can view the complete list of contractors here.
Inside Irvine’s First Full Service Hotel in a Decade
April 13, 2018 – Globe St. - by Kelsi Maree Borland
THE NEW $120 MILLION IRVINE SPECTRUM MARRIOTT IS THE FIRST FULL-SERVICE HOTEL TO HIT THE MARKET IN A DECADE, AND DEVELOPER R.D. OLSON SAYS THAT IT FILLS A BIG HOLE IN THE MARKET.
The first full-service hotel in more than a decade has opened in Irvine. R.D. Olson Construction has completed construction of the Irvine Spectrum Marriott, a $120 million 15-story full-service hotel. The project fills a void for high-end product in the market, which is popular for leisure and business travelers. It will specifically target millennial travelers with a host of amenities and food and beverage options.
“Our vision was really to create a hotel that fit in with Irvine Ranch. There is a rich history of Irvine Ranch, which has gone from ranches and farms to universities,” Bob Olson, president of R.D. Olson Development, tells GlobeSt.com. “It has been a great evolution. Our vision was to create a hotel that is reflective of where we are. To be able to reflect that history through the artwork and the design was a lot of fun.”
The absence of full-service hotel development in Irvine says more about economic prosperity than demand, according to Olson. Select-service is more cost effective to build, and as a result, more of that hotel product type has come to market. “To be honest, investors prefer select-service hotels. I though the full-service piece was missing in the market,” explains Olson. “There was not a full service hotel to the extent that it created an opportunity for us. It was really a big hole in the donut, and we stepped up and filled it. We met what the market wanted, and that can be hard to determine. We found that a lot of travelers in this market were not staying in the area because there wasn’t high enough lodging, and that was especially true for business customers.”
The developer felt the demand justified the project. Since, the market has seen healthy growth, especially in the office sector, inflating the need for full-service hotel. “We pulled the trigger on this project three years ago, and at the time, the economy was healthy, but growing at a sluggish pace,” says Olson. “There wasn’t the confidence then that you see today in the hotel market, but we felt confident in the Irvine Spectrum market. We thought that long-term, it was a great place to do business, and today, it really is becoming the business center of Orange County. I think that this will emerge as one of the leading business centers in Southern California.”
While there were some pessimists about the project, Olson says that the positive traction has already proven the success of the hotel. “Our customers love the hotel. Guests are going to run into both locals and travelers on the rooftop bar,” he says. There is a great pulling together and a sense of place.”
The developer plans to hold the property for the long term.Building Relationships and Communities
April 11, 2018 – Affordable Housing News - Spring 2018
A California-based developer exceeds expectations when it comes to affordable housing
By focusing on forming strong relationships with clients, developers and the communities in which it works, R.D. Olson Construction has achieved success in more ways than one.
With a range of new efforts in the affordable housing space, the firm seeks to make an impact for limited-income residents while cultivating a close-knit company culture.
According to President Bill Wilhelm, the success of R.D. Olson is due largely to its commitment to these relationships.
“We are after growth, but we’re after growth in relationships and partnerships with our existing company base and our new future customer base,” Wilhelm says. “We are not out chasing a number. We know that our financial growth will [increase] with our success with partners and customers.”
Wilhelm has been part of the R.D. Olson team since 1994. Over the years, he has witnessed the company move from a somewhat small general contractor to one of the industry leaders in ground-up and renovation construction.
Pursuing loyalty
R.D. Olson focuses on serving the needs of its existing customer base above all else. Returning business makes up about two-thirds of its current portfolio, and Wilhelm hopes that this figure will continue to grow in the coming years.
“Part of our short- and long-term goal is to increase the repeat business,” Wilhelm says. “About 70 percent of our volume is repeat business, and that tells you what kind of company we have. It’s one that truly is focused on quality over quantity. When you have that kind of approach, success is always right in front of you.”
R.D. Olson has participated in the development of projects ranging from restaurants to hotels. More recently, it has branched out into affordable housing. One of its recent efforts, the Village at Calabasas, added 180 units of housing to a community in southern California. The property was completed in 2016.
Fullerton Family Housing in Orange County is now under construction and, upon its completion in spring of 2018, will offer 55 units of affordable housing. The site itself is compact, requiring some creativity to make the most of the development.
“It’s almost like putting a property on a postage stamp,” Wilhelm says. “We are maxing out this site with open space, including decks, walkways and things of that nature.”
Despite the limited space for construction, development at Fullerton Family Housing is taking place with careful attention to architecture and aesthetics.
“The rooms are very spacious,” Wilhelm says. “Sometimes, you get the wrong impression when you hear the words ‘affordable housing.’ These are nice units. They’re spacious, and the finishes are definitely above the standard in the industry. It’s just a great property.”
R.D. Olson has a time-lapse construction camera accessible through its website, allowing members of the public to see progress in real time.
“Our customer base loves it, our people love it and even our community loves that they can watch their community grow,” Wilhelm says. “We get a lot of feedback about how powerful that webcam is on our job sites.”
As for the community in Fullerton, Wilhelm says that the reception of the new development has been overwhelmingly positive. R.D. Olson’s focus on building relationships within the community has led to a strong reputation for the firm.
“From what I can see, I think that the community has welcomed it with open arms,” Wilhelm says. “[Opposition] is just a part of revitalization, but the city has worked with the design team very closely on the aesthetics of the building and the general appearance so that it will blend in well with the city of Fullerton.”
R.D. Olson’s commitment to delivering exceptional products remains at the forefront of this new affordable housing development.
“If we’re going to do it, let’s do it right,” Wilhelm says. “Let’s beautify it and let’s make it feel like it is a true part of our community.”
Investing in people
Achieving success over the course of nearly four decades has required a level of commitment to clients and employees alike. In the coming years, Wilhelm says R.D. Olson will continue to invest in its employees, giving them opportunities to take on leadership roles within the company.
“We are looking at our next generation of leaders,” Wilhelm says. “The last few years, we have been continuing to build within the ranks. We know sustainability is not just about having backlog, but also having tenured employees.”
Having an engaged workforce gives R.D. Olson an edge over its competitors and demonstrates its commitment to people.
“I can walk into a presentation and talk about our people and the length of time and experience they have, and typically that gives me a little bit of an advantage over a competitor that I might be up against in this industry,” Wilhelm says. “Our people are the greatest assets that our company has.”Olson Construction Seeks Boost in Multiunit Projects
April 9, 2018 – Orange County Business Journal - by Paul Hughes
Move Meant to Diversify Mix, Retain Talent
R.D. Olson Construction Inc. has made recent inroads in multiunit contract building and said it will maintain or slightly expand its work in that market as it continues a diversification drive of the past five years in a slowing hotel construction market.
The Irvine-based sister firm to hotel owner-developer R.D. Olson Development Inc. in Newport Beach is largely known as a hospitality construction company.
The Business Journal OC 500's Bob Olson owns both, and the former builds for the latter. R.D. Olson Construction built the Marriott Irvine Spectrum, which opened in March, and the boutique Lido House in Newport Beach, which opens in May.
Last year it was No. 13 on the Business Journal's list of commercial construction companies, down two notches, with $218 million in revenue, down 6%.
Partner and President Bill Wilhelm, who also owns a stake in the company, said it's now at about $225 million in annual revenue - two-thirds from hotels.
About 30% is from multiunit projects, up from 20% in recent years; 97% of multiunit work is affordable housing, student housing and timeshares. and there's a sliver of market-rate, or standard-priced work. Wilhelm wants more mixed-use apartment projects-rental living that includes retail-and to get back to assisted living.
About 5% is from construction of educational campus buildings, which Wilhelm began to increase his focus on about three years ago.
Social Calendar
He aims for 35% of revenue from multiunit construction and 8% from the education work.
If the remix plays out, R.D. Olson Construction's reliance on hotel construction will drop from 75% of business a few years ago to 57% a few years from now.
All of Olson's multiunit work is for-rent product, which bears a striking resemblance to hotels when considered as ultra-short-term rentals-as short as one night.
The hotel business, including construction-Olson's bread and butter-had a five year boom that began a few years after the 2008 recession.
Olson benefitted building, for instance, the Pasea Hotel & Spa in Huntington Beach, an R.D. Olson Development project that opened in 2016. Olson Construction's 2017 revenue of $218 million was twice its annual take as of June 2012, when it was No. 16 on our construction list as $98 million-up 51% year-over-year.
Hotel construction is said to be cooling.
People attending the Americas Lodging Investment Summit, produced each January in downtown Los Angeles by Costa Mesa-based Burba Hotel Network LLC, over the past two years have discussed a market peak over all, a subsequent shaking out in some markets, and which "secondary markets" should now get attention.
Luxe Rental
Orange County still looks strong for hotel construction, according to recent data of consultant and broker Atlas Hospitality Group in Irvine. Market research by L.A.-based CBRE Hotels shows annual boosts of 5.8% in average daily rate, 8.6% in revenue per available room, and 2.6% in occupancy, as of February.
But Olson also builds outside of OC. Wilhelm said its history runs as far east as Atlanta and his vision extends beyond the county's environs with that continued focus on for-rent product.
He means that in a good way.
"With the cost of housing, people are leaving single-family homes and going multifamily," he said.
Empty-nesters cashing out and downsizing or millennial who can't afford to buy-both still want stylish stuff.
Affordable housing in OC is going to be nicer than your average bear cave, and other pieces of the multiunit puzzle also skew higher-end.
Students typically pay above-market rates for rooms, for instance, and healthcare facility owners, such as assisted-living projects, have pushed into properties where residents pay out-of-pocket instead of through Medicare.
Locals involved in those markets include Ladera Ranch-based real estate investment trust Strategic Student & Senior Housing Trust Inc., which has raised about $82 million of a planned $1.1 billion to buy property. Nelson Brothers Professional Real Estate LLC invests in student and senior housing.
Local healthcare facility REITS are to one degree or another looking to private-pay tenants at properties they own.
HCP Inc. has strongly de-emphasized Medicare-related facilities, Sabra Health Care REIT Inc. less so; both are in Irvine.
The Dance
Olson Construction is consequently looking to fill its dance card in workers, colleagues and clients.
It hired Cynthia Cook as business development director six months ago to make it rain on both multiunit deals and education construction.
It strutted its stuff a bit with the renovation of space in old-town Orange across from the train station for the home of the Hilbert Museum, a Chapman University art gallery.
Olson hasn't gotten a lot of revenue from the education pivot yet, but "we're enhancing relationships, and prospects are improving," Wilhelm said.
Cook's hire highlights an intriguing element of the multiunit effort-the need to attract and keep staff.
Our 2017 construction company list showed a 13% jump in Olson's employee count to 123. Wilhelm has to hold those workers in a tight labor market and fill gaps as others retire.
"You need a pipeline to grow and retain talent," he said.
In colleagues and clients, it looks in part to hospitality "project partners" as "excellent referral sources" for new work.
It's building 110-unit student housing project Santiago Hall for Chapman that's scheduled to open in the summer of 2019 and 55-unit affordable-housing apartment deal Citrea in Fullerton near the train station and downtown that's scheduled to open in June.
The developer on the latter is Related California in Irvine, led by the OC 500's William Witte; the designer is IDS Group Inc. in Irvine.Is El Segundo L.A.’s Newest Hot Hotel Market?
March 12, 2018 – Globe St. - Kelsi Marie Borland
Adaptive Reuse: A Growing Trend in High-Density Markets
February 6, 2018 – Hotel Online, written by Bill Wilhelm
4 Ways to Ensure Safety on the Jobsite
February 5, 2018 – Construction Dive, written by Bill Wilhelm
Plan ahead
Long before a job starts, extensive planning should be done to identify which tasks will be taking place onsite and how best to plan for potential safety hazards. Project managers and field representatives should put preventative measures in place and communicate them to workers, and provide the appropriate tools and equipment. Zoning, which involves blocking off areas where certain tasks are taking place, installing catch platforms, nets and other safety measures, is an important part of this planning phase. By allowing only those working on a task within the zoned area past the barrier, it helps to prevent bystander injury. This methodical process also helps ensure that workers within the zoned area have the right protective equipment and tools for that specific job. One-third of all construction fatalities are a result of falls — from buildings, structural elements and ladders — making them one of the most critical safety issues for which to plan. Appropriate scaffolding needs to be installed, holes in the structure need to be cordoned off or otherwise managed, and other potential fall hazards should be planned for before construction begins. Transportation incidents are the second most common issue, with vehicle contact/collision accounting for 29% of fatalities.Manage the risk
Less obvious factors proven to cause safety issues should always be considered when developing and implementing a safety plan. According to a study commissioned by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), most deaths on construction sites occur between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., with fatalities peaking around noon. Almost 75% of fatalities happen on Mondays through Thursdays, with industrial projects reporting more incidents than residential, commercial and other project types. What does this mean for you? Consider scheduling safety meetings around noon during the beginning of the week, and make sure there is a strong protocol for safety during lunch breaks. If you are working on an industrial site, encourage frequent safety meetings and perhaps more stringent safety protocol that accounts for the dangers unique to industrial building. The AGC report also shows that small construction companies with one to nine employees account for a much higher fatality rate (26 per 100,000 workers annually) than larger firms. If you are at a smaller company, don’t make safety planning any less of a priority. There is also a strong correlation between fatalities and the summer months, and deaths are also more common in the South than other areas of the country. This may be due to heat-related illness and exhaustion. Make sure workers have adequate access to water, encourage them to take regular breaks and train them to monitor for heat-related issues.Scheduling and staffing
Another overlooked but pressing safety issue is worker exhaustion. The industry-wide talent shortage can make it difficult to appropriately staff jobsites, leading some companies to over-schedule workers in order to meet demanding construction schedules. But no matter how many preventative measures and education programs you put in place, it’s all for nothing if workers are too physically or mentally worn out to follow protocol. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports that accidents and injury rates are 30% greater during night shifts, and working 12 hours per day comes with a 37% increased risk of injury. Safety isn’t just a concern on jobsites, though. Decreased alertness resulting from fatigue has been cited as a contributing factor in major workplace disasters, such as BP's Deepwater Horizon oil refinery explosion, the Challenger space shuttle explosion and the nuclear accidents at Chernobyl and Three Mile Island. Don’t put your construction site at risk for disaster just to shave a few days or weeks off the construction schedule. Extended shifts can be correlated with an increased risk of having a car accident on the way home from work by 16.2%. They can also lead to a higher probability of developing health problems due to prolonged exposure to chemical and noise hazards. Companies can help prevent worker exhaustion, and improve retention, by limiting extended shifts, ensuring employees and subcontractors aren’t working too many hours and taking possible talent shortages into account when creating the project schedule.Safety as a culture
For a safety program to be successful, safety needs to be integral to a company’s culture. Education is one way to instill this. OSHA’s 30-hour Construction Training Course is one example of a valuable program that ensures every worker has the same comprehensive knowledge that can be built upon during company trainings. While the OSHA program is geared toward safety directors, foremen and field supervisors, it is ideal if everyone in the company goes through the training to make sure the takeaways are spread across every level of the organization. Trainings shouldn’t be relegated only to management and employees. It’s best if subcontractors and other partners also receive trainings, ensuring their safety standards are in line with a GC's own. Regular safety events, onsite and off, that teach workers about the latest regulations and give refreshers about existing ones are also critical to promoting a culture of safety. They can range from brief onsite recaps to fun team-building exercises. Regardless of the format, they typically should be done at least weekly to make safety part of workers' daily mindsets. Planning, risk management, staffing and education are all important components of keeping job sites safe. As an industry, we owe it to our workers to prioritize safety and give them all the tools necessary to prevent incidents before they occur.Scoring Newport Beach Bingo
January 19, 2018 – The Real Deal - Kavita Daswani
National general contracting and construction management firm R.D. Olson Construction, based in Irvine, is building the luxury Lido House Hotel in Newport Beach. The hotel, on the site of the former City Hall, is part of Marriott International’s Autograph brand.
Slated to open in the spring of 2018, the 103,000-square-foot, four-story, 130-room hotel is located close to the Lido Marina Village, a shopping and entertainment center, which itself underwent a renovation last year. Developed by DJM Capital Partners, the 116,000-square-foot retail, dining and creative office project now houses trendy eateries such as Nobu and fashion brands such as Elyse Walker and Warby Parker in addition to a 47-slip marina. "
Adaptive Re-Use Emerges as Hotel Sector’s Hedge Against Risk
January 12, 2018 – Connect Media
The hotel sector in Southern California is booming. Los Angeles County set a record for drawing tourists last year, hosting nearly 50 million visitors in 2017. That was a 2.2% increase over the record 47.3 million tourists in 2016.
To gain a better understanding of trends shaping the industry, Connect Media asked Bill Wilhelm, President of Irvine, CA-based R.D. Olson Construction, to share insights. The company recently completed the dual-brand H Hotel at LAX, which is part of Hilton’s Curio Collection and Homewood Suites in Los Angeles.
Q: Why has adaptive re-use become more prevalent than new construction in the hotel industry?
A: In the past few years, there has been an increase in demand for adaptive re-use projects over ground-up construction in high-density areas with limited space available for new construction. At R.D. Olson Construction, about 60% of our projects are now in adaptive re-use and large-scale renovations, largely because many of our projects are in the high-demand Southern California market.
In an industry of highly commoditized hotel chains, adaptive re-use gives hotel developments a competitive advantage through the unique character and creative use of space that differentiates these types of buildings. Second, adaptive re-use is more cost-efficient, reducing the price of materials and construction equipment. Furthermore, having an existing structure to build upon makes adaptive re-use a speedier process, allowing hotels to go to market much faster.
Q: In the current economic climate, is adaptive re-use a good hedge against a potential downturn?
A: Yes, adaptive re-use is a good hedge because it allows for much shorter timelines, which reduces the risk that a recession or other economic downturn will happen mid-project and allows the hotel to start becoming profitable faster by getting guests in the door sooner. It also allows for more flexibility to adapt to new trends and changes in supply and demand levels. A smaller investment is required for adaptive re-use, which also is appealing in the case of a downturn.
Q: Are there non-economic benefits to adaptive re-use as well?
A: More than economic gain, adaptive re-use offers social and environmental benefits. Adapting old structures for new purposes allows developers to preserve any cultural and historical significance a site has for the surrounding community. In addition, adaptive re-use projects reduce energy consumption typically caused by demolition, additional machinery and the use and transportation of raw materials. Overall, the energy output for adaptive re-use is much less than ground-up construction.The Most Anticipated Hotel Openings of 2018
December 30, 2017 – Vogue - by Christina Liao
As 2017 comes to a close and we look forward to the year ahead, jet-setters have plenty to be excited about when it comes to new hotels. There will be a lodge in a Rwandan national park perfectly situated for observing primates in their natural habitat; a luxurious retreat with direct access to a highly Instagrammable geothermal spa; and even a historic village that has been relocated and reassembled brick by brick in the hopes of conservation. Many of these properties are destinations in themselves, some might introduce you to a new neighborhood in one of your favorite cities, while others will bring you to far-flung locales waiting to be explored. As you plan your travels for 2018, here are 14 of the most anticipated openings we’re keeping an eye on next year.
2. NoMad Los AngelesDowntown Los Angeles is going through a resurgence and the arrival of the new NoMad is only further proof of its comeback. The flagship property, along with its stellar restaurant, has long been favored by New Yorkers (it was even chosen by Beyoncé for her Soul Train–theme birthday party last year), which will make this second outpost particularly special for bicoastal travelers. Arriving late January, NoMad Los Angeles is taking over Giannini Place, a building originally built in the 1920s that served as the Bank of Italy’s headquarters. Aspects of its Neoclassical construction have been preserved and the hotel’s 241 rooms will pull inspiration from the carefully restored gold and blue Italianate lobby ceiling while still maintaining the Parisian flare we’ve come to know and love. The food and beverage program will be overseen by chef Daniel Humm (of acclaimed Eleven Madison Park) and restaurateur Will Guidara and will include an Italy-inspired café, but the rooftop, with its alfresco dining space, cocktail bar, and pool, will surely be an instant hit.
R.D. Olson Brings Dual-Branded H Hotel To The Los Angeles Airport
December 13, 2017 – Hotel Management - by Elliott Mest
When converting the property the developers came across a vault that had to be removed, as it overlapped with the hotel’s planned layout.
When it comes to hotel conversions, nothing offers up surprises like a concrete office building from the 1960s. When R.D. Olson Construction cracked into what would eventually become the H Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton and Homewood Suites in Los Angeles, company president Bill Wilhelm didn’t expect to find a backup transformer for the nearby Los Angeles International Airport, as well as a walk-in vault buried behind a number of walls.
Wilhelm said such “features” were unexpected, yet not too uncommon in the world of adaptive reuse. When the building’s owner, Sea View Investors, partnered with R.D. Olson to build a dual-branded Curio/Homewood Suites by Hilton combo out of a leftover building at the LAX airport, Wilhelm took one look at the property’s documentation and boiled it down to one word: Vague.
“It looked like a prison building,” he said. “It had concrete fiberglass fins on the outside. It wasn’t that attractive. We learned a long time ago the best thing to do in instances such as these would be to take the interior all the way down to the structural bones. The mechanical systems may have some life left in them, but you may be better off tearing it all out. So we did.”
R.D. Olson determined that the exterior of the building was good enough to keep, but updated it to modern aesthetic standards. Roughly $60 million was spent on converting the property into a dual-branded hotel. Unfortunately, Wilhelm said the building’s hidden vault had to go.
“We hate to tear apart something with a great story, and of course it’s quite costly because these things are built like Fort Knox, but location made the difference,” Wilhem said. “We talked about keeping the vault because it was impressive. Unfortunately it was dead center on the first floor and conflicted with a planned retail restaurant. There was no way to lay out around it.”
“Both fitness centers are impressive, but the Curio is over the top,” Wilhem said. “It’s located on the 12th floor, it overlooks the LAX runways and when you’re on a treadmill it feels like you are running down the landing strip. Homewood’s fitness center is more internal, and overall it’s a different presentation.”
Unlike the vault, the aforementioned LAX transformer was forced to stay on property. Wilhelm said developers were forced to work with the Los Angeles Department for Work and Pensions—as well as a coordinated shutdown of backup emergency generators at LAX during certain periods of development—partly to update the transformer to meet current safety and electrical standards. However, Wilhelm said these are typical aspects of an adaptive reuse such as this, particularly one located near an airport. The biggest challenge facing developers today, he said, lies with subcontractor resources.
“It’s an industrywide challenge,” Wilhelm said. “Developers need strong relationships. We counted our lucky stars on this one because we had strong relationships, which made it easier than it could have been. Another challenge is city agencies, as they are all understaffed. They are doing a good job keeping up with the number of products going up in Los Angeles, but it’s taxing these systems.”
For the future of the LAX development market, Wilhelm said there are still opportunities for future growth, almost exclusively in adaptive-reuse projects. Like many developers in the industry, he has concerns about oversupply, and he cautions against overbuilding in a market that may not be able to sustain it.
“In the short term, we have to be careful due to how supply and demand is playing out,” he said. “The airport is spending billions on growing its infrastructure and terminals, and the Olympics is coming to Los Angeles in eight years. That may seem like a long time, but it will take a lot of effort and planning. We have to be careful, and we have to reinvest in our communities to keep opportunities close to home and make these developments sustainable.”
Adaptive Re-use Dominates Hotel Builds
November 22, 2017 – Globe St. - Kelsi Maree Borland
Adaptive re-use is starting to dominate hotel development. In the last year-and-a-half, R.D. Olson Construction says that the majority of its hotel projects have been major redevelopments or adaptive reuse projects. The construction company recently completed an adaptive re-use hotel project near LAX, converting a dilapidated office building into a dual-branded hotel.
“In the last three to five years, there has been a greater need for additional hotel rooms,” Bill Wilhelm, president of R.D. Olson Construction, tells GlobeSt.com. “So, there has been a lot of activity and a lot of hotel renovations. About 60% of our construction volume is in hospitality, and in the last year-and-a-half, we have seen a tremendous swing going from ground-up to adaptive reuse and major renovations. Before, we were running about 55% new, and now we have flipped it to where we are doing about 58% in adaptive reuse and the balance is in new construction.”
It makes sense that adaptive re-use has become popular for hotel projects. They are less expensive than ground-up construction and reserve character. Most importantly, however, they are much faster to build. “When you have an adaptive reuse opportunity, there are a lot of positives,” says Wilhelm. “One is the speed at which you can get a project up and running to where you have heads on beds, as we call it in the hotel industry. Two, when you look at the overall cost of construction for replacement cost, typically, you can find yourself a building that has a lot of character that you can use. It is more economical than doing ground-up construction.”
Adaptive re-use also helps to hedge against a potential downturn. Because the hotel is profitable more quickly, it can be a good tool for developers looking to get off the ground. “A lot of hotel developers and owners understand the demand, and it has become all about speed and how to get heads on beds,” adds Wilhelm. “We are trying to beat the industry when the industry starts to soften up. We are starting to see some of that. For the first time in six years, we have seen a decrease in new hotel starts. We are getting to the supply demand level where you are going to have to be careful with how many rooms you bring into a general area.”
The 12 story, 260,000-square-foot H Hotel adaptive re-use project took approximately 17 months to complete.
Safety Concerns in The Construction Industry
November 21, 2017 – Globe St. - Carrie Rossenfeld
NEWPORT BEACH, CA—Safety is a culture, and educational programs need to be put in place to instill this culture and ensure that individuals in the construction industry are aware of their surroundings in the, R.D. Olson Construction’s president Bill Wilhelm tells GlobeSt.com. Implementing proper protocols from the start not only keeps workers safe, but also increases speed and productivity, he adds. We spoke with Wilhelm about how companies can improve their safety records and create a better working environment for employees and subcontractors.
GlobeSt.com: What are the top safety issues in the construction industry right now?
Wilhelm: The hottest issue in safety continues to be fall protection. Whether it is prioritizing the installation of safe scaffolding on the side of buildings or managing holes that go through the floor, potential causes for falls should always be closely monitored on construction sites.
Ear and eye protection are also some of the most critical safety concerns. Eyes are most vulnerable because they are the most exposed, and sparks from welding jobs, saws and other tools are common with any construction project. All individuals on a construction site need to wear proper hearing and eye protection to prevent injury.
GlobeSt.com: How can companies prevent safety issues from occurring?
Wilhelm: Safety is a culture, and educational programs need to be put in place to instill this culture and ensure individuals are aware of their surroundings. At R.D. Olson Construction, our employees are OSHA 30 certified, ensuring they have the training they need to promote our culture of safety. We have safety events and safety tailgates as often as once per week on job sites. Our safety directors also do full safety inspections on site at least once every other week. Safety is an ongoing part of our training and education, and is fostered across all levels—from management and employees to subcontractors and other project partners.
Regardless of the issue, safety as a whole is all about communication. On every site, you need to first identify the tasks that are taking place and what safety measures need to be implemented during every step of the construction process. Zoning, which involves cordoning off spaces when certain tasks are taking place to ensure those nearby aren’t at risk of being injured, is often part of our safety protocol.
GlobeSt.com: From a cost and productivity perspective, what are the benefits to implementing proper safety protocols and education programs from the start?
Wilhelm: Ensuring the safety of workers should always be the top priority, no matter the cost. However, the cost of implementing these protocols and education programs is often negligible and nearly always saves money in the long run. Safety issues, no matter how minor, can delay a project significantly, affect worker morale and lead to costly investigations. Implementing proper protocols and training from the start is the right thing to do, but it also has the added benefit of increasing speed and productivity.
GlobeSt.com: What else should readers know about this topic?
Wilhelm: An often overlooked, but extremely important, safety concern is exhaustion and general wear and tear on workers’ bodies. Tired workers present a very serious safety issue on job sites, and with an industry-wide talent shortage, it’s even more of a concern. Exhaustion can cause experienced workers to make simple, split-second mistakes that could be deadly. Companies can take preventative measures by ensuring that employees and subcontractors aren’t working too many hours and that the building schedule is realistic from the start.
R.D. Olson’s latest Aviation Inspired Hotel Project on the Local News.
November 6, 2017
R.D. Olson Construction Highlighted in the Orange County Business Journal
October 23, 2017
R.D. Olson Construction named Civic 50 Orange County Honoree
September 18, 2017
The Orange County Business Journal (OCBJ) today announced the 50 most community-minded companies in Orange County. The Civic 50 Orange County, presented by the OCBJ and in partnership with OneOC, provides a local standard for superior citizenship and showcases how companies can use their time, skills, and other resources to improve the quality of life in the community where they do business. This is the first time the Civic 50, a national initiative of Points of Light, has been localized to a specific market.
Since 2012, the Civic 50 has recognized the 50 most community-minded companies in the nation each year as determined by an annual survey developed by True Impact. For Orange County, honorees were determined using True Impact's adapted national Civic 50 online survey that is independently administered and scored.
Companies were selected based upon four dimensions of their community engagement programs: investment, integration, institutionalization and impact. The Civic 50 OC honorees include businesses from three categories: small, medium and large (based on the company's number of local employees.
The inaugural Civic 50 )C Awards luncheon will be held October 19, 2017 at the Hotel Irvine featuring keynote speaker Matthew Emerizian, founder and CEO of Every Monday Matters. All 50 honorees will be recognized at the event , and five awards will be given in the following categories: small, medium and large company; emerging company; and legacy company.New Affordable Projects Help Residents Live Near Work
September 8, 2017 – Globe St. - Carrie Rossenfeld
ORANGE COUNTY AND L.A. COUNTY RESIDENTS ARE INCREASINGLY FORCED TO MOVE OUT OF THE COUNTY IN WHICH THEY WORK DUE TO THE STATE’S HOUSING CRISIS, MAKING PROJECTS LIKE FULLERTON FAMILY HOUSING EVEN MORE NECESSARY, R.D. OLSON’S BILL WILHELM TELLS GLOBEST.COM.
FULLERTON, CA—Orange County and L.A. County residents are increasingly forced to move out of the county in which they work due to the state’s housing crisis, making projects like Fullerton Family Housing even more necessary, R.D. Olson Construction’s president Bill Wilhelm tells GlobeSt.com. The firm began construction last month on Related California’s 55-unit affordable-housing project here, its fourth such project, and completion is expected in May 2018.
The site is located at 335 East Santa Fe Ave., in close proximity to Downtown Fullerton and adjacent to the area’s train station. We spoke with Wilhelm about what makes this project unique and how affordable-housing construction compares to other multifamily projects.
GlobeSt.com: What features and amenities will Fullerton Family Housing include?
Wilhelm: Fullerton Family Housing will comprise 54 affordable units with one manager’s unit onsite. The five-story, 52,407-sqaure-foot complex will have studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments available for rent, and includes a 24,000-square-foot parking garage. The walkability of the area offers a huge benefit for future residents, who will be able to walk to downtown Fullerton and access a train station adjacent to the site. The complex itself includes a courtyard, playground, BBQ area, on-site leasing office, bike storage room and laundry facilities. It is expected to be completed in summer of 2018.
GlobeSt.com: What need do affordable housing projects like this fill for Orange County residents?
Wilhelm: There is a full-fledged housing crisis in California, and this is especially the case in Orange and Los Angeles counties. Residents increasingly are forced to move out of the county in which they work. There is a severe shortage of affordable housing, and projects like these will allow more Orange County residents to be able to afford to stay in the area. Housing in prime, walkable locations with convenient access to public transportation gives residents more access to jobs, a better quality of life and allows them to spend more time with their families and less time commuting.
GlobeSt.com: Is there anything unique about affordable housing construction in comparison with other multifamily projects?
Wilhelm: Typically, affordable multifamily projects are in neighborhoods with smaller sites that can’t accommodate larger apartment complexes, which can present construction challenges. For this project, we are working with the railway, which is providing us with additional temporary storage space for building materials and setup. When building up to the property line, creative partnerships like this are essential to ensure construction is completed on time and under budget.
Additionally, affordable-housing complexes typically are built with easy access to public transportation to accommodate families who may not have access to their own transportation. Proximity to a train station is a big reason we chose the site for Fullerton Family Housing. This contributes to a lessened need for parking spaces, which maximizes the number of units that can be built on the smaller sites. An affordable-housing site could have 80 units, but only 40 parking spaces.
GlobeSt.com: How does this project fit into R.D. Olson Construction’s multifamily portfolio?
Wilhelm: This project is R.D. Olson Construction’s fourth affordable complex, and adds to our extensive multifamily portfolio in California. Our multifamily work spans many market sectors, and includes senior housing, live/work townhomes, luxury apartments, condos, student housing and more. As far as affordable housing, our most recent project was the 180-
unit Village at Calabasas, which was completed in 2016.Record Number Of California Hotel Rooms Open in First Half of 2017
July 18, 2017 – Orange County Register
The number of new hotels that opened in California increased 53 percent in the first half of 2017 and there were 15 percent more hotels in development and 6 percent more under construction vs. the same period in 2016, according to an Atlas Hospitality Group study.
“This is a record number of hotel rooms that have opened in the first six months of the year,” said Alan Reay, president of Irvine-based Atlas.
Twenty-six hotels, with 4,730 rooms, opened in the first half of 2017 vs. 17 hotels in the same period of 2016.
Reay said many hotels are being built now because the price of buying and renovating older hotels is high, that it is more attractive to build a new hotel, construction financing and loans are readily available and there have been six years of revenue increases.
In Orange County three hotels with 461 rooms opened during the first half of the year.
Homewood Suites by Hilton Irvine John Wayne Airport: The 161-room hotel opened this winter. It offers studio, one- and two- bedroom suites. Each has a fully equipped kitchen. The hotel has a fitness room, pool, business center and meeting rooms.
The project was Irvine-based R.D. Olson Construction’s first partnership with hotel management and development company DKN Hotels, also based in Irvine.R.D. Olson Construction Named as One of the Best Places to Work in Orange County for the Second Year in A Row
June 29, 2017
We were just notified that we have once again made the list of Best Places to Work in Orange County. We have attempted to receive the award twice and have successfully made the list both times, so that speaks volumes to the atmosphere that all our associates try to cultivate within the walls of our office as well as out in the field on our project sites. The incredible positivity that all our associates possess is a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit that drives our business forward. When our associates are able to make decisions for the way they handle their job and are rewarded consistently for their initiative, it makes for a truly great and dynamic corporate environment.What Determines If Hotel Projects Move Forward?
March 3, 2017
IRVINE, CA—Timing is a major issue in hotel projects as this point; if a project is not far enough along in drawings, permits, etc., it may not make it off the ground, R.D. Olson Construction’s president Bill Wilhelm tells GlobeSt.com. The firm, a successful builder of hotel properties in California recently completed construction on Homewood Suites by Hilton Irvine/John Wayne Airport. The ground-up project marks the firm’s first partnership with Irvine-based hotel management and development company DKN Hotels.
The four-story, 161-room hotel is located in the Irvine business and industrial district and is close to Orange County shopping centers the District, South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island. The hotel represents the firm’s third completed project in Irvine, with the Irvine Spectrum Marriott currently underway.
The 126,000-square-foot hotel boasts studios and one- and two-bedroom suites with 42‑inch HDTVs and kitchens that include a full-size refrigerator, microwave, stove and dishwasher. The property’s outdoor amenities include a pool and spa, fire pit, BBQ grills and a sports court with options for basketball, volleyball, badminton and smashball.
R.D. Olson also recently completed work on the 174-room Country Inns & Suites by Carlson in the Anaheim Resort District and the 200-room Residence Inn by Marriott hotel in Wailea, Maui, HI, the first family-centric hotel in Wailea. Other recent completions include Paséa Hotel & Spa in Huntington Beach, CA, the 144-room Residence Inn by Marriott in Old Town Pasadena, CA, and the 94-room Hampton Inn & Suites in Glendale, CA. The firm is currently building additional regional hospitality projects including the 130-room Lido House Hotel resort in Newport Beach, CA; the 271-room full-service Irvine Spectrum Marriott in Irvine, CA; and the 118-room Residence Inn by Marriott Santa Barbara/Goleta in Goleta, CA.
We spoke with Wilhelm about the Homewood Suites project, hotel-development trends he is noticing in Orange County and takeaways from ALIS, which he recently attended.
GlobeSt.com: Why was this project a good fit for the airport market?
Wilhelm: It is in kind of a secondary airport to the market, and based on its vicinity to the airport, will allow it to be a strong secondary feeder to the airport market. It’s not directly at the airport, but a spit throw away. It has easy access, and it’s in an area with a lot of corporate business, more industrial type of business. It’s a great location: off the beaten path, but with great geographic identification. Also, Tustin’s Marine Corps Air Station is still going thru major discussions—what will they do and what will happen. It’s the first steps to what will eventually be promising development in that area.
GlobeSt.com: What hotel-development trends are you noticing in Orange County?
Wilhelm: There are two trends. One is that Orange County itself has had so much growth take place—both residential growth and continued enhancement of corporate growth. The business sector and the growth of tourism, Disneyland and that whole market has been strong. Disneyland continues to do what the Irvine Spectrum area is doing: constantly challenge themselves by asking, “What are we current with what are the general population’s needs? What can we offer our guests in terms of more experiences? They’re always thinking outside the box on enhancements. Irvine Spectrum, too, constantly challenges itself as far as what the needs are today. In the Spectrum area, some retail pieces have come and gone, and they’re stepping up more food-service providers. They’ve done a good job of putting great restaurants in and entertainment so people want to hang out there—you can have a great dinner and people watch. You have the tourist side of it and also the corporate business side of it. When you look at the occupancy and rental part of it in the Orange County market, so many things are taking place where companies are repositioning and expanding based on the opportunities.
The office side has also picked up. But from a hospitality perspective, Orange County is an area that has done well and has additional growth opportunities because you have multiple feeders: tourism, corporate and residential.
GlobeSt.com: What trends did you notice at this year’s ALIS conference?
Wilhelm: The overall trend is one of a little bit of caution. Predictions still show a very strong year, 2017 going into 2018; predictions are that they will be equivalent to 2016, and there may be a little bit of growth. There are a number of projects that are in planning, under construction and in development.
I look at timing and finance. I really want to understand where they are in the timing cycle: drawings, permits, where are they in their financing? There’s a concern that somewhere down the road, we will start to see a few deals not go forward because of timing. We’re also seeing some developers that recognize that. Everyone is looking forward and trying to make that mad dash to the finish line; there’s a lot of adaptive reuse where the individual can get their hands on a property and be out there in renovation mode, and then 12 to 14 months later, they now have heads on beds; whereas, a new property could take 14 to 24 months or longer. A lot of it is geographic, too—the market will play a stronghold, and primary markets will always do well.
I’ve heard the saying, “California isn’t overbuilt; it’s under-demolished.” From a hotel perspective that’s so true. There are so many older properties, but what will it take to bring a 25-year-old property to current standards. I think in today’s world, everyone’s willing to pay a few more dollars for a fresh, new property that provides the experience that people are seeking. You want to be out and engaged with socialization around you, whether out by pool or in the lobby. There’s a lot of business taking place in common areas among people who may not even be guests of the hotel, but are using the business-area environment. It’s a way to do business to have a cup of coffee and have a meeting.
GlobeSt.com: What does your firm currently have in the pipeline?
Wilhelm: We’re busy, but always looking for great opportunities. We have some nice projects under construction today in hospitality, including new ground-up hotels and adaptive reuse that converts office to hotels. We’re doing a refresh of Palomar Hotel in Beverly Hills, CA—we’re refurbishing the lobby, bar area and amenities. We’re also in the time-share market and the education market. Among all those markets, I still see another 18 months of active work with some pretty exciting projects./pR.D. Olson Contributes Insight to the Wall Street Journal
February 22, 2017
Immigrant Crackdown Worries Food and Construction Industries
By Jacob Bunge, Heather Haddon, and Eric Morath
Memos issued by the Trump administration on Tuesday said millions of people living illegally in the U.S. are subject to deportation and called on local authorities to enforce immigration laws.
The announcement set many in the food business in particular on edge. “We’re preparing our members as best we can,” said Jim Bogart, president of the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California, which represents producers of vegetables, mushrooms and grapes.
An executive order signed by President Donald Trump last month banning entry to the U.S. from seven Muslim-majority countries for at least 90 days over terrorism concerns has been held up by courts.
A White House official on Wednesday confirmed that it wouldn’t issue its revised executive order on immigration travel restrictions until next week. The administration had previously said it would release a new order this week.
Administration officials suggested the new executive order would have a similar aim as the previous one. In an interview on Fox News on Tuesday, policy adviser Stephen Miller said, “Fundamentally you’re going to have the same basic policy outcome for the country.”
The agriculture and construction industries have relied on immigrants for decades to do tough, low-paying jobs U.S. citizens often avoid, from picking berries to slicing up hogs to erecting framing for houses. Many of these workers are undocumented.
“Business is business, and whether it’s the farming industry or the construction industry, we already have a resource issue,” said Bill Wilhelm, president of R.D. Olson Construction in Irvine, Calif., which specializes in hotel construction. “You already have a shortage of documented individuals. So if you have fewer and fewer undocumented, at the end of the day it’s going to have an impact on projects.”
Foreign-born workers make up about three-quarters of the roughly 1.1 million workers on U.S. farms, and nearly half aren’t legally authorized to work, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In the construction industry, 13% of workers in 2014 were undocumented, according to data from the Pew Research Center, along with about 9% of workers in the leisure and hospitality industry, which includes restaurants.
Labor-strapped American employers increasingly rely on immigrants—including those in the U.S. illegally—to counter the trend of an aging native-born population. If millions of illegal immigrants were deported, “you would have massive labor shortages,” said University of Michigan labor economist Donald Grimes.
Department of Homeland Security officials said their limited resources mean they would focus on immigrants who pose a public-safety risk. But they also said immigrants aren’t exempt from deportation just because they don’t fall into a priority group. “The enforcement priorities are criminal aliens as well as those who pose national-security and public-safety threats,” said White House spokesman Michael Short on Wednesday.
In Fresno, Calif., immigration attorney Camille Cook said she is helping to organize rapid-response teams for the area’s farmworkers, many of whom are undocumented immigrants from Mexico. Those teams aim to advise dairy and crop workers on their rights if immigration authorities show up on their doorsteps, she said.
Not all of the changes—like expedited removals for immigrants—will take effect immediately. Carol Meylan, director of Intra-Agency Programs at Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, said she expected most effects of the executive orders wouldn’t be felt for several months as the government hires more border-patrol agents and puts new procedures in place.
Still, Ms. Meylan said, “with 5,000 more border-patrol officers [planned], we’re anticipating there’s going to be a big change.”
Mr. Wilhelm of R.D. Olson Construction said he is waiting to see the impact of the government’s moves but expects that stepped-up deportations would affect all operators in his industry.
Immigrants wait for work last month at a day-labor pickup site in Stamford, Conn. The city has an official zone for employers to pick up such workers.
The Grower-Shipper Association, based in Salinas, Calif., has issued recommendations since last month about how to respond to immigration raids, outlining workers’ rights and current immigration policies in coordination with other industry groups. Mr. Bogart said half his days now are dedicated to calls with producers and lawmakers to discuss immigration issues.
Others are already seeing fallout from the tougher tone from the Trump administration. Paul Halderson said his 1,200-cow dairy farm near La Crosse, Wis., was left short-handed after losing a handful of immigrant employees in recent weeks, who opted to return to Mexico.
While Mr. Halderson said his employees all have legal standing to work in the U.S., some have worried about family members and the general climate for immigrants. “It is unrealistic to believe that dairy farming can continue as it is without the Mexican employees,” said Mr. Halderson.
Harold McClarty, co-founder of HMC Farms in California’s Fresno County, estimated the crackdown could lead to millions of dollars in losses for his stone-fruit and table-grape operation.
The restaurant industry, which also relies heavily on foreign-born workers, has long used E-Verify, a federal worker-screening program that allows employers to check employees’ legal status online.
“We have let our franchisees know of the increased activity and used it as an opportunity to remind them…that all franchisees use E-Verify,” said a spokeswoman for Dunkin Brands Group Inc., owner of Dunkin’ Donuts, which was an early adopter of E-Verify.
—Chris Kirkham, Julie Jargon and Ian Lovett contributed to this article.Four R.D. Olson Projects Mentioned and Honored in California Meeting and Events Magazine
February 17, 2017 – California Meetings & Events
It's remarkable to have four of our recent projects mentioned and honored in California Meeting & Events Magazine's Winter Issue. The anticipation for the Irvine Spectrum Marriott (page 29) and Lido House Hotel (page 44) is increasing, while Pasea Hotel & Spa is named "Best New Venue" and W Hotel is named "Best Renovation" (page 39). Check all the full stories here.
CEO, Bob Olson, recognized in the Orange County Business Journal’s OC500
November 15, 2016 – Orange County Business Journal
Build Magazine recognizes R.D. Olson Construction as Most Innovative General Contractor and Most Innovative Hotel/Resort Project for the Pasea Hotel & Spa
October 26, 2016
More public spaces. Catering to international visitors. Hotels with local flair.
October 23, 2016 – Orange County Register
R.D. Olson Construction Named as One of the Best Places to Work in Orange County
July 25, 2016 – Orange County Business Journal
R.D. Olson Construction is incredibly proud to have been recognized as one of the top workplaces in Orange County for 2016. This achievement is attributed to our outstanding staff who go above and beyond to work as a team and stay connected as not just associates but as a family united. The dedication of our team members is something that drives the entire success of our business and every individual within the organization makes it a pleasure for every other associate. Hard work can also be fun, and at R.D. Olson we constantly strive to make our environment as enjoyable as possible.
Building a Gem
July 14, 2016 – Construction Today
The hotel will be a good fit in the Irvine Spectrum community, Wilhelm says. “It’s a property that will be associated with a number of different venues in the area, serving the local office, residential and retail communities,” he says. “It will make a great splash and fill a void in the hospitality offerings in that area.”
The hotel’s amenities and meeting space allow ample opportunity for both work and leisure activities, Wilhelm adds, which is especially relevant given the property’s location nearby several major corporation headquarters and central Orange County housing and shopping. “The property allows for the flexibility to create environments that allow guests and visitors to accomplish their daily work and host corporate events. At the same time, if the family wants to tag along on a business trip, they can enjoy the best of what the full-service facility has to offer as well as nearby amenities,” he states.
Shared Values
R.D. Olson Construction’s sister company, R.D. Olson Development, is developing the project. This is not the duo’s first hotel for Marriott International in Irvine, Wilhelm says. “Irvine Spectrum Marriott is located adjacent to a Courtyard by Marriott that we constructed,” he says. “Those two properties will perform well for Marriott and provide business travelers and visitors with a variety of options.”
R.D. Olson Construction has much in common with Marriott, Wilhelm says. “Both companies really care about people and the end-user experience, and also continuously aim to be at the forefront of our respective industries,” he says.
On the Cutting-Edge
R.D. Olson Construction is building Irvine Spectrum Marriott with sustainability in mind, Wilhelm says. “With the new Title 24 credits in California emphasizing construction ‘greenness,’ more attention goes into every detail such as the electrical system and the way it monitors different circuitries,” he says. “By examining these back-end systems from the beginning, we can make sure that the property performs in a more environmentally-friendly way without placing large burdens on the end-user.”
Such sustainable features will make Irvine Spectrum Marriott an upgrade from other hotels, Wilhelm adds. “It is definitely a property that will be a cut above the rest,” he says. “It is a true reflection of how many hotel brands are continuously upgrading their brand on a yearly basis.”
The hotel’s design is still being developed despite the construction process being underway, something to which R.D. Olson Construction is accustomed. “We’re part of that frontier team, out there working with ownership and Marriott on finishes, textures, colors and other elements that will give this property the ‘wow factor’ it needs to be cutting-edge and exceed guest expectations,” he says.
This design/build approach has become more common in the travel industry, as hotels want to stay in tune with what is popular with guests. “In about 80 percent of hotels that R.D. Olson builds, we’re in the trenches during the design phase, trying to make the concept the most successful it can be,” Wilhelm says.
In the case of Irvine Spectrum Marriott, the interior design will celebrate the rich history of the Irvine Ranch, in keeping with R.D. Olson’s dedication to paying homage to the communities in which its hotel projects are located.
Seeing Success
Based in Irvine, R.D. Olson Construction started operations in 1979 and provides general contracting and construction management services for clients nationally. Wilhelm, who joined the firm 22 years ago, credits its success to its people. “We’ve got the best in the industry, bar none,” he says.
Finding those people can sometimes be difficult, he admits. During the recession, “The construction industry lost a number of qualified craftsmen,” he recalls. “Some retired and some went into other industries.”
Like many, it was a challenge for R.D. Olson Construction to make up for the lost labor. However, the company “does a good job of managing that challenge,” he asserts. “We have strong relationships with our subcontractor community.”
He sees a strong future for the company, which has learned many lessons over the past 37 years. “We have always performed well during tough times,” Wilhelm says. “Because of our vast experience and industry knowledge, we’re able to anticipate downturns, and make adjustments accordingly.
“The company’s success and growth is attributed to the strong partnerships we have established with our customers,” he asserts. “There is a direct correlation between our customer’s growth and ours.”Is Goleta a Hotbed for Hotels?
July 1, 2016 – GlobeSt.com
LOS ANGELES—R.D. Olson Development has partnered with Joseph Martelli Real Estate Investments has broken ground on a Residence Inn by Marriott Goleta. The developers are partnering with R.D. Olson sister company R.D. Olson Construction to build the 118-room hotel. Located near Santa Barbara in Silicon Beach South, Goleta has a robust business sector, driven by engineering, software and aerospace industries, according to the developer, making it a perfect site for a hotel development.
“Goleta is a hot bed for engineering, software and aerospace firms due to its quality of life, strategic central coast location adjacent to Santa Barbara, and close proximity to Vandenberg Air Force Base where we will see more private launches take place in the future,” Bob Olson, CEO and founder of R.D. Olson Development, tells GlobeSt.com. “In addition, the University of California Santa Barbara campus located nearby continues to attract world class students and professors and we feel it will continue to be a major driver for visitation to the area. We look to meet the strongest need in market with our new developments and felt upscale extended stay was the gap here.”
The three-story property sits on 3.8 acres on Robin Hill Road and South La Patera Lane in Goleta, and is 80,000 square feet. It features studio, one- and two-bedroom suites, some with full kitchens. This room mix will allow both short-term leisure guests and business travelers to utilize the property. Additionally, there will be 1,300 square feet of meeting space and an outdoor pool and spa, landscaped patio with a fire pit, large fitness center with CrossFit style equipment, a business center and a guest laundry.
The extended-stay property will target both business and leisure travelers in the market. “We have tried to perfect a timeless design for this hotel that pays homage to the rich culture and history of the area and we have incorporated a meditation and display garden to pay respect to the original inhabitants of this land the Chumash Indian Tribe,” adds Olson. “We want this hotel to age with grace and be a relevant and functional property 50 years from now. This hotel will also have great amenities including a resort style backyard pool and spa, putting green, and a giant chessboard in the lawn for anyone to enjoy.”
R.D. Olson has broken ground on the project and aims to deliver it to the market in late 2017. This is a long-term investment for the firm. “We built it with the expectation that we will own it forever,” says Olson. “We spent a lot of time in the details trying to get everything just right and we are excited to see the community and visitors experience the hotel. One of the payoffs for all of the hard work getting a hotel developed is seeing customers use it. We can’t wait to open this beautiful hotel in the second half of 2017.”R.D. Olson moves up another spot to #11 on the OCBJ Top Commercial Construction Companies List
June 13, 2016
R.D. Olson Construction inches their way up another spot this year to #11 on the Orange County Top Commercial Construction Companies list, but we definitely have the #1 team! We are thoroughly excited that our company continues to grow and look forward to another year of success.
Pasea Hotel & Spa Project Named as One of the “Best New Coastal Hotels”
May 23, 2016 – CNN.com
R.D. Olson Once Again on the Top 400 US Contractors List
May 19, 2016 – Engineering News Record
Irvine, CA – Thanks to our staff's continued dedication to excellence, we were able to get on the ENR (Engineering News-Record) Top 400 Contractors List in the United States. This award is a great measure of the success R.D. Olson has seen in the last few years and exemplifies the organization’s continuous pursuit of top notch service and quality projects in the hospitality, restaurant, multi-family, retail and entertainment sectors. We charted at #302 up from last year's #374 position and we know 2017 can only bring bigger and greater success. You can view the complete list of contractors here.Bicycle Casino Highlighted in Lodging Magazine
April 5, 2016 – Lodging Magazine - April 2016
Our recently completed Bicycle Casino Hotel was given a full spread with full project details in the April 2016 issue of Lodging Magazine. A great way to commemorate such a grand project that R.D. Olson Construction is so proud of.Sense of Place Hugely Important for Hotels
March 9, 2016 – Globe St. - Carrie Rossenfeld
Olson: Each of these hotels is unique to what the market demand is. Our focus isn’t to bring a pre-set idea to a market, but to bring what the market is lacking. For example, in Huntington Beach, there was no truly lifestyle hotel that actually had the ability to hold large weddings, meetings and outdoor events in an oceanfront setting. That’s a category we felt was lacking, so that’s where Paséa Hotel & Spa comes in. We liked what Shorebreak has done, and it actually gave us some confidence that the demand was there, but the market needed much more meeting space and ocean views. Shorebreak was successful, but this piece was missing. For the Irvine Spectrum Marriott, we had developed a Courtyard there, and it was very well received by the business and leisure community, but what was missing was the full-service category—this market hasn’t had a new one in 10 years. We saw the demand for that through the hotel we have there. Marriott has recreated the Marriott brand—the mothership brand for Marriott—and they’ve made a big push to reinvent the brand to today’s travelers. We are the first rebuild of this new brand. It incorporates new rooms with wood flooring (no carpet), open closets, everything that appeals to today’s traveler. Marriott is the best in the business when it comes to understanding today’s travelers and keeping up with their demands. They have great research teams for every brand. We’re the first new build of that new brand, and combined with the shortage of full-service hotels in the market and what we knew from Courtyard, it gave the market what it was missing.
In Newport Beach, no new hotel had been built in 50 years. What we felt was missing there was a destination brand hotel where people go to really experience Newport Beach, what it has to offer, and to feel like they’re really in the fabric of Newport Beach. Many people think of Newport Beach as Fashion Island, but the reason people came was right here, on the peninsula—Lido Village and out to the Balboa Pavilion. People took the Red Car Trolley down from L.A., and the Pavilion was built in 1906. There really had been nothing to accommodate guests of a high quality in this area. We felt this was a great opportunity to do a destination brand that brought Newport Beach to Newport Beach, if you will. This hotel will celebrate its history, but also today’s fabric of Newport Beach, which makes up everybody from the surf crowd to the yachting group and even skateboarding. There’s a tremendous eclectic mix of so many culture, and this is a great way to bring that together.
Wilhelm: Each of these hotels is in a very unique community that is thriving and working together to enhance the community experience. The Irvine Spectrum area has developed and will continue to develop a great community—a live/work/all-around experience. You’ve now got a full-service hotel that will really enhance the experience of holding the community together: you’ve got the live/work aspect and part of the white-collar experience of Irvine Spectrum; the tech industry is also starting to expand its horizons in that area. I believe that having a full-service hotel brings things to full circle there and takes the game up a notch or two. With the Paséa Hotel—Huntington Beach has always been a very cool surf city. Over the last several years, it has grown a number of residential single-family communities and condos in the area. The city has always done a great job at trying to enhance the experience in Surf City—people use dot go there to surf, play volleyball and grab a burger. Today, there are hotels and condos and also a great retail experience with Pacific City. Paséa will be one of the top-rated hotels in Southern California, and there are a Hyatt and a Hilton next door to each other, which is enhancing the hospitality experience. The Paséa is looking to capture individuals who want to stay a number of nights.
As for Lido Village, the peninsula is a great place to hang out, but it has struggled with having a new identity. It had been kind of a sleepy town, but there have recently been some very impressive movements form the development side. They’re expanding and bringing to the forefront what Newport Beach is all about. There are lots of areas like Newport Coast that have been experiencing liveliness, but the peninsula has lagged. Lido Village will really help; it’s the gateway to the peninsula, and Lido House will really help launch that gateway. It’s a beach community property where you’ll know you’re in Newport Beach because the designers are focused on making the community a part of the design. They have really pulled the community into the project. Read the entire story at Globe St.com
Tracking the Rise of Microhotels
February 26, 2016 – Globe St. - Carrie Rossenfeld
R.D. Olson Construction’s Tim Cromwell shares insights on the hospitality industry’s latest opportunity to appeal the Millennials - the microhotel - in this exclusive with GlobeSt.com.
Irvine, CA—The hospitality industry has recognized an opportunity to appeal to Millennials and go further with the existing trends of improved hotel amenities without raising rates by simplifying individual guestrooms, R.D. Olson’s EVP Tim Cromwell tells GlobeSt.com. Some are calling this new combination of small rooms and lively common areas “the microhotel.” We sat down for an exclusive interview with Cromwell about the microhotel trend, which brands are adopting it and where it could lead.
GlobeSt.com: What makes the “microhotel” attractive to Millennials?
Cromwell: Hotel brands and developers are trading spacious or luxurious guestrooms for common areas that foster community. With an emphasis on vibrant communal space, style and economic value, microhotels appeal to today’s social traveler. Millennial-friendly amenities include large common areas, free WiFi, breakfast, and smaller guestrooms to encourage socializing and use of the property’s common areas.
GlobeSt.com: What hotel brands are jumping on board?
Cromwell: Some of the most fascinating and dramatic applications of the microhotel concept can be seen at properties that are looking to capture the more budget-conscious Millennial. For example, Pacifica Hotels is targeting the Millennial subset at the Wayfarer in Santa Barbara, CA, where guests can choose between private hotel rooms or dorm-style hostel rooms. In addition to the heated pool, community kitchen and “playful” decor, the hotel/hostel advertises the lively activity of Santa Barbara’s nearby State Street as an amenity in itself. Pacifica Hotels has similar plans for converting the historic Ritz-Milner Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles to another Wayfarer property in 2016.
Additionally, Marriott’s Moxy brand couples 183-square-foot standard rooms with amenities targeted at urban travelers such as full bars and grab-and-go food offerings. In the same vein, Hilton’s Tru brand plans to offset compact 230-square-foot king rooms with 2,770 square feet of varied amenity space to offer travelers a range of areas to relax and socialize.
GlobeSt.com: Will this trend continue for new hotel developments in the future?
Cromwell: Microhotels have been well received in urban areas and are expected to continue expansion into more suburban areas where travelers look for both great value and smart design. It will be interesting to watch how the hospitality industry evolves to further capitalize on the community-minded nature of the Millennial traveler in 2017 and beyond. For now, the name of the game is the exchange of larger, luxurious guestrooms for more highly amenitized common areas that foster community.
Reasons For Plateau on New Hotel Builds
January 27, 2016 – GlobeSt.com
IRVINE, CA—Concern about oversaturation has arisen among hotel developers and lenders who see quite a bit of product in the pipeline, opening opportunities in renovation and repositioning of properties, R.D. Olson Construction’s president Bill Wilhelm tells GlobeSt.com. The firm was recently selected by Disney Way Partners, L.P., as the general contractor for the new Country Inn & Suites ground-up hotel project in Anaheim. We spoke with Wilhelm about how hotel brands and developers choose fulfill their objectives in a particular market, as well as his expectations for hotel construction this year.
GlobeSt.com: How do hotel brands and developers fulfill their objectives in a particular market?
Wilhelm: That’s a question that’s not all that easy to answer. Geographics is playing a lot into what hotels are built and where, and also the number of equal-type hotels that might be located in a general area. Brands will be very careful not to oversaturate a local market based on what they have in the market. From a branding perspective, they understand what they have in that neighborhood. Brands do a really good job of gauging what the market conditions can withstand from a renovation or development perspective.
Developers are looking for dirt, knocking on doors and selling why that location makes sense. They’ve got relationships with different brands, and they understand what makes a location work in a specific area. Local geographics play a lot to the success of a hotel long term. They start to evaluate what kinds of rooms, what features and what the community is looking for in order to get the best return on their investment. That drives a lot of it—they’re not going to put in a full-service hotel in an area that doesn’t have opportunities to fill those rooms. You want to put a full-service hotel in a market that has corporate customers but can also fill rooms with weekend usage.
You also have different market levels—primary, secondary—and some markets in the last four to five years have been all over the place. As the hospitality industry starts to slow down, certain markets may become a little skittish, so what is going to drive those rooms? Local business segments such as tourism might be in secondary market that aren’t bad markets, but a turn of events means they might not fill up as well.
They also look at existing properties flying their flag that may be aging, so they ask franchisees to update the properties to make them current; they might not renew a franchise if they don’t update. That’s part of the brand side; the developer side is understanding a geographic market and where they resonate putting heads on beds. Read more here.
Hotels to Add 100,000 SF of Event Space to Market by 2017
January 18, 2016 – Orange County Business Journal
By Paul Hughes
...Construction on a “lifestyle” hotel under the Marriott name starts in Irvine in March with a fall 2017 opening planned, said Mike Chavez, senior project manager for R.D. Olson, which is developing the project.
It’s “right across the street from (the) Taco Bell” headquarters and just off the I-5 (Santa Ana) in the Irvine Spectrum area.
The hotel includes a 5,000-square-foot ballroom that can be divided into two meeting rooms if needed; a 6,800-square-foot lawn; and a 1,500-square-foot prefunction area that opens onto both of the larger spaces —similar to the Paséa setup.
Two other meeting spaces—a boardroom of about 500 square feet and a 2,000-square-foot room that can be split in half—bring the hotel’s total space to just less than 16,000 square feet.
Chavez pointed out an interesting lawn element “for guests to have fun with,” a nearly life-sized chessboard—it covers about 240 square feet—with pieces 3 to 4 feet high.
Guests Love Amenities: The Shift in Demand from Select-Service to Full-Service Hotels
January 6, 2016 – Western Real Estate Business
The hospitality market has made a true comeback over the past several years as a result of the improving post-recession economy. Business trips are more common, and families and couples are once again traveling for pleasure. To keep up with the increased demand, the hospitality construction and development sectors have responded, adding various properties, many of which are select-service hotels in strategic locations. While this rapid growth has positioned the hospitality sector well, there are signs the market is imminently changing— and that the strategy behind hospitality construction and development must, and will, change with it. The improvements in the economy have driven increased demand for beds and amenities. That same economic upturn has also boosted land and construction prices, ultimately increasing the cost of hotel development. While there is stilldemand for additional hotel rooms in some markets, others are showing signs of saturation. Hospitality professionals will need to address both the increased cost of construction and market saturation – and provide a truly unique product — if they are to succeed and compete in the changing marketplace.
- Bill Wilhelm, President - R.D. Olson Construction
Read the entire story on page 24 of this month's Western Real Estate Business.
The hotel boom of 2015
December 29, 2015 – Orange County Register
High occupancy rates, rising room rates, record hotel sales - the year had it all.
We’re excited to be a part of the booming hotel industry in Orange County this year! According to a recent article in the Orange County Register, the OC experienced high occupancy rates, rising room rates, and an increase in new construction in 2015. Our Pasea Hotel & Spa project, slated to open in the spring of 2016, was featured in the piece, which highlighted the hotel’s unique customer experience and amenities, such as flip flops instead of slippers and 34,000 square feet of event space. Learn more about the region’s hotel boom here.
Built to Last
December 22, 2015 – CSUF Mihaylo Magazine
By Laurie McLaughlin
As the economy strengthens, the building industry has regained momentum, and Joe Cervantes' Leadership has helped R.D. Olson Construction maintain a competitive advantage.
Read our Executive Vice President's entire corporate profile in his Alma Mater's magazine here.
Building a Legacy
November 17, 2015 – Construction Today
R.D. Olson Construction Expands Its Reach and Positions Itself for Success - By Janice Hoppe
In its 36th year of providing excellence in general contracting and construction management, R.D. Olson Construction has a well-established reputation in the industry and is now focused on building its legacy for the future. "What have we focused on in the last couple of years?" President Bill Wilhelm asks. "Not letting our prior 35 years of success get in the way of the future and focusing on what kind of change we have to make to adapt to the change in the industry."
Founded by Robert Olson in 1979, the Irvine, Calif.-based company established itself as a nationwide general contracting and construction management firm recognized for reliability and customer loyalty. The company is known for its hospitality construction expertise, as well as its growing presence in healthcare and multi-unit projects.
Sixty percent of R.D. Olson Construction's work focuses on the hospitality sector, including new development, renovation and repositioning, spas, country clubs and restaurants. About 30 percent of its work includes multi-unit projects that include timeshares, assisted living, student housing, and for-rent and sale properties. The balance of its work includes private education, healthcare and entertainment facilities.
"we are focused on increasing our revenue stream in areas outside of hospitality, though that is our bread and butter," Wilhelm explains. "We have an impressive reputation for being a hospitality builder, but we are a company that is focused on the future, our legacy and sustainability. You have to look outside the environment you have played in for some time and work on segmentation rebalancing."
Multigenerational Workforce The entrepreneurial spirit of the company translates into making a difference in the client's experience, enhancing relationships with subcontractors and the design team in an effort to "hit the grand slam" for a project's success, Wilhelm explains. "We are very impressed and proud of our people," he adds. "They have come forward with accepting the necessary change, as we focus on the future."
Finding associates is one of the biggest challenges facing the company - and the industry as a whole - because of the decline in younger generations entering the construction industry. "It's an industry that has been depleted; the construction industry was hit pretty hard (during the recession)," Wilhelm notes.
However R.D. Olson is beginning to see a new injection of individuals into the industry and prides itself on the multigenerational workforce it has created. "How do you bring different generation together to feed off what each other has to offer?" Wilhelm asks. "The seasoned associates may not be as tech savvy, but the younger generations, that's what they do - they live and die by technology. The younger associates are teaching the seasoned associates how to capitalize on technology that's available and the seasoned individuals are opening the door and educating the younger generations on what being a builder is all about."
Developing a multigenerational culture is part of what sets R.D. Olson apart from the competition and is its greater goal of building a legacy for the future. Although implementing state-of-the-art technology and new systems regularly attracts the younger generations to R.D. Olson, it has also become an industry standard. So to go above and beyond that, the company is focusing on building a strong community connection that younger generations crave. "We create a lot of opportunities for our associates to do things together within and outside the company to create experiences for individuals to be part of something bigger," he explains.
To see the rest of this story click here.
Chapman University Gallery in R.D. Olson’s Curriculum
November 9, 2015 – Orange County Business Journal
CONSTRUCTION: Builder looks to downshift on hotel work
R.D. Olson Construction is rejiggering its outlook as it renovates an Old Town Orange building into an art museum for Chapman University.
The job is one example of moves by the Irvine-based builder—known mainly for hotel construction—to get ahead of an expected drop in that market.
“We’re in the process of diversifying,” said Olson Construction President Bill Wilhelm. “We’re getting involved in education again to take our company forward.”
The renovation will turn the space into a temporary home for the Hilbert Museum of California Art. The museum’s collection of 246 paintings of California scenes were donated to the school last year by real estate developer Mark Hilbert and his wife, Janet, of Newport Beach.
Chapman estimated the gift’s total value at $10 million, including $3 million to establish a home for the museum, which eventually will take permanent residence at a former fruit packing house near Chapman’s film school.
“We’ll have a hundred paintings in the initial show, and subsequent exhibits will draw from the collection,” Hilbert said.
Olson Construction is only signed to renovate the temporary space.
The job is an early move in what Wilhelm said is a planned pivot toward more education projects.
The company plans to cut its hospitality building from about 60% of its work to about 45%. The rest will be spread over multiunit residential—including student housing and timeshares—with a smattering of healthcare and other work, he said.
Growth Market
The builder is shifting gears at what appears to be an opportune moment.
Wilhelm said the hotel industry is near the top of its market cycle. And education is on an upswing, thanks to a mix of public funding and private fundraising.
“New builds will slow down in hospitality,” he said, but “any campus, public or private, is bursting at the seams.”
Some local examples:
• The district board of Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa last week approved $450 million worth of renovations and additions to its campus funded by Measure M money to include dorms, a swimming pool, and buildings for a half-dozen academic areas over 10 years.
• University of California-Irvine has about $119 million in new construction and renovation projects approved for next year after about $118 million that was on tap for 2015.
• Some 81,000 square feet of construction under a previously completed master plan at Concordia University in Irvine are wending their way through specific city approvals.
Concordia Provost Mary Scott said, “We’re waiting for the [environmental impact report],” which is expected in the spring.
Most buildings are planned to be completed within 10 years, she said. The first is a music and worship center.
“The project is on schedule” for what the school hopes will be a late-2016 start, and the estimated costs for the first phase of Concordia’s project is about $26.5 million, according to Scott.
A dozen companies—a list that will be whittled down to six finalists, she said—have so far responded to the university’s request for qualifications.
Wilhelm said Olson Construction expects to get on the list for the Concordia work.
Old Friends
The $3 million job for Chapman is significantly smaller than Olson Construction’s typical contracts.
A 200-room hotel, for example, runs about $50 million to build, industry estimates show.
Olson’s local operations had 2014 revenue of $145 million, good for No. 12 on the Business Journal’s most recent list of commercial construction companies.
The company isn’t entirely new to Chapman’s campus.
It renovated Chapman’s Partridge Dance Center, which is next door to the new museum, in 2002, according to Kris Eric Olsen, Chapman’s vice president of campus planning and operations. He worked for R.D. Olson Development, a sister company to the construction firm, before joining Chapman.
“Partridge had a significant role in our decision” to hire Olson, he said.
Olsen said Chapman opts for builders “with direct experience” in the type of project it needs.
Chapman chose McCarthy Buildings Cos. in Newport Beach on that basis for the $78 million Marybelle Sebastian P. Musco Center for the Arts, which is due to open in March.
The school has a 140,000-square-foot science center out to bid.
It’s also “looking at new student housing,” Olsen said.
Colleges Need Buildings for Competitive Advantage
October 27, 2015 – Globe St.com
ORANGE, CA—Strong real estate assets can help universities jockey for high ratings in an industry that competes for the best students, professors and programs that higher education can offer, R.D. Olson Construction’s president Bill Wilhelm tells GlobeSt.com. As we recently reported, the firm is building the Hilbert Museum of California Art, a new museum at Chapman University here, including the construction of the university’s new Musco Center for the Arts. We spoke exclusively with Wilhelm about the project and trends in academic development.
GlobeSt.com: What changes are you noticing in academic development?
Wilhelm: Universities have definitely been ramping up for an increased enrollment degree that they’ve been challenged with the last few years. Enrollment is up across the board, from private colleges to public universities, even though people have been through tough times—they realize that higher education is important. Everyone is looking for ways to adopt and extend education. We look at job candidates all day long, and we are focusing individuals who are bringing a higher level to the table as an offering of their overall portfolio. People are looking at the future of companies, sustainability and legacies.
In the educational world, a lot of schools are putting together a 10-year program, a master plan, with their needs and the items they’re trying to capture. Some California universities have a 42,000-student enrollment but can only house 3,500 students. So, they’re looking to expand their amenities: science buildings and lecture halls, labs, etc. They’re looking for student housing as well as on-campus hospitality for visiting parents and professors.
Regardless of the university, every campus within Southern California has the same problem on the housing side, and on the academic side, schools have to provide the competitive advantage as well. They’re all jockeying for rating in an industry as the best pharmacy or law school. They’re racing to bring on top-notch professors, and they’re realizing they haven’t done much from a development perspective as they needed to do. There’s a competition to pull in the best and brightest students and professors—even Nobel Peace Prize-winning professors to provide that department recognition and to truly create that brand.
GlobeSt.com: How are academic buildings becoming more cutting edge and less institutional?
Wilhelm: In the last 15 years, they haven’t chased this as much as they should have, but they’ve shifted focus; now they’re fully engaged in catching that. Regardless of the industry, we study multigenerational aspects quite a bit, and Gen Z has hit the media. It all comes back to what their needs are, but there’s this lifestyle, this expectation of what we have to adapt to the needs of the future.
Universities are getting away from the institutional look; they’re creating a very free-flowing-lifestyle environment. They’re trying to design as best they can into the local geographic element. For example, Chapman is a phenomenal campus, and it has the old city of Orange charm. Every university is doing a great job in partnering with local communities and creating this lifestyle, open-format, technologically advanced environment that has a feel of where we’re all going. Universities are creating this true open concept, this “bring the family on in” feel. For this generation of students, this is what they’re looking for. You see it in the multifamily and hospitality industries, and it’s the same in academics. Who is our end user? What are their needs and expectations? We’re no longer doing things because of the industry, but because of this expectation from the users.
More of this story here.
Residence Inn Wailea – “Maui, A Very Robust Year”
October 9, 2015 – Building Industry Hawaii - October 2015
"R.D. Olson Construction, Marriott's California contractor, reports that 'the new hotel will be located on a 6.37-acre land parcel and will be among the first new build Residence Inn Generation 9 properties in existence.' The project broke ground in July 2014 and is scheduled to finish in May 2016...
Loosely translated, wailea means 'water play'...so it's only fitting that the Marriott Wailea Residence Inn incorporates water as a distinguishing feature in their design and operation. Along with a 'resort-style pool and spa' Marriott's new 200-room, four-story Wailea hotel will feature a fitness center, an outdoor sports court, a market and 1,800 square feet of meeting space."
Neighborhood Inspires Hotel Design
August 31, 2015 – GlobeSt.com, by Kelsi Maree Borland
Los Angeles, CA—Hotel developers are beginning to look to the location and community for design inspiration. The recently opened Marriott SpringHill Suites in Burbank is the perfect example. Developed by R.D. Olson Development and built R.D. Olson Construction, the hotel design and amenities are informed by Burbank’s rich entertainment history—and in some cases, atypical for the hotel brand. Infusing pieces of the community into the hotel helps attract guests and locals alike. To find out more about this trend and how the team approached the design of this property, we sat down with R.D. Olson Development VP of asset management Jonathon Vopinek, R.D. Olson Construction president Bill Wilhelm and R.D. Olson’s VP of interior design Sue Ellen Langford.
GlobeSt.com: What are hotel guests looking for in their common amenities that guests weren’t demanding 5 years ago?
Bill Wilhelm: Guests are looking for a variety of things from each property that they encounter. Specifically, flexibility, experience, visibility and communal openness are traits that speak to hotel guests today. All of these qualities tie into the end-users’ desire to have the property serve them in all aspects of their lifestyles.
Jonathon Vopinek: Five years ago, streaming a Netflix account through a hotel television wouldn’t have crossed anyone’s mind. Now, it is something that will become an industry standard in the near future. We are proud to offer this type of service in the SpringHill Suites, as we believe it is important to keep up on the latest technology and deliver it to our guests.
Lobbies with creative spaces are becoming more and more popular. People want to gather in hotels’ common areas, instead of just coming down to the lobby to get a cup of coffee and then heading back up to their rooms. Additionally, incorporating local art into the interior design of a hotel has become popular. Over the last few years people have made an effort to support local businesses, so to see a hotel doing the same creates a genuine experience for the guests.
GlobeSt.com: How did the surrounding market affect the design of the property?
Wilhelm: Because the property is located in Burbank, the design explored the filming industry. As a result of the revitalization and stimulation that has taken place in the area, the hotel needed to have a fresh, hip approach that would speak to millennials.”
Vopinek: In the 1920s, the motion picture business moved to Burbank, and today Burbank is home to hundreds of media and entertainment companies. The interior of the hotel pays homage to the entertainment and media industries that have shaped the city. The bar and lobby areas honor classic Hollywood icons, and are complete with images of Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, and Bob Hope. Today, approximately 100,000 people work in Burbank every day. It is a business destination as well as a tourist destination. We needed a design that would attract the business traveler, so we went for a classic, clean, and modern approach with a public area that is spacious, eye catching, and inviting. For the tourists and families visiting the area, we incorporated a fun outdoor space into our design, complete with a pool, outdoor BBQs, and an extra-large outdoor chess set.” – Jonathon Vopinek, vice president, asset management, R.D. Olson Development
GlobeSt.com: What was your inspiration for the design of the hotel?
Sue Ellen Langford: The interior design conveys a media centric concept that has a custom boutique feeling that taps into the nostalgic glamorous lifestyle of the TV and Movie insiders, while maintaining the reliability of a Marriott select service brand. The simple elegance of the finishes within a fresh contemporary context creates a perceived elevated value that still feels comfortable and approachable.
How Amenities Expectations are Changing Development
August 17, 2015 – GlobeSt.com, by Carrie Rossenfeld
Bill Wilhelm was recently interviewed by Globe St. on his views on how amenities are playing a role in construction and development.
IRVINE, CA—Developers must approach each property creatively to generate the best customer experience, including combining property types or offering unexpected amenities, R.D. Olson Construction’s president Bill Wilhelm tells GlobeSt.com. We sat down with Wilhelm for an exclusive interview about how user expectations about amenities are shifting planners’ and developers’ approach to their properties.
GlobeSt.com: There is a growing expectation for amenities that were traditionally only accessible at certain property types to be “always available” to tenants wherever they go. How do you see this trend playing out in the market?
Wilhelm: Today’s customers expect more out of their properties than in the past. They want to combine where they live, work and play, accessing all their “lifestyle options,” whether they are at home, at the office, on vacation or at the mall. Developers must now take a step back and look to define user demographics and their specific needs before deciding what to develop in a certain market and, more specifically, at a given site. In the California market, land availability is becoming scarce, requiring developers to approach each property creatively to generate the best customer experience. Developers can achieve this goal by “combining” property types or offering unexpected amenities in a more traditional setting.
GlobeSt.com: Your current work at SmartStop’s Ladera Sports Center—which combines storage and recreation—demonstrates the fusing of property types to meet the growing pressures to provide more. How is this shift creating opportunities for developers?
Wilhelm: Ladera Sports Center is a great example of what is transpiring in many communities in California. One of our clients, Lutzky Associates Development, identified a need for both storage and sports facilities in the Ladera Ranch community for its client SmartStop and engaged us to construct a space that would meet those needs. The project that is currently underway combines storage facilities, an athletic complex and a new corporate office for SmartStop, making the most of the property and meeting the needs of this geographic area.
Across geographies, Master planners are looking for ways to combine property types or introduce new amenities to make the property “work harder” for its end users. For example, the Irvine Spectrum area has introduced medical-office buildings and senior-living options to complement the area’s existing office and retail offerings. By introducing these types of properties into amenity-rich properties, it creates convenience for all end users. Now, they can visit their doctor, run a few errands and see a movie all in one trip. These choices are not accidental. The value of a given property is greatly affected by its direct adjacencies, and developers and master planners are looking for ways to make all of their investments more valuable, all while creating a better experience for the end user.
GlobeSt.com: What are the construction considerations for this shift?
Wilhelm: For the Ladera Sports Center project, our goal was to combine three types of user needs—storage, recreation and office—and that end goal directed our construction efforts. High-end property types, such as recreation facilities and offices, require different construction than industrial properties, such as storage units. In a project that combines these property types, it is important to fully understand the developer’s vision and the users’ needs to create a cohesive look and feel through the interior and exterior skins, while mitigating costs. In cases where multiple property types are combined, it is imperative for a general contractor to be involved early in the process to contribute solutions that maximize property value and customer satisfaction, while maintaining the designers’ and developers’ original intent for the project.
GlobeSt.com: What does the future look like for this “providing more” trend?
Wilhelm: We will see an increased demand for multi-use property types, from both a convenience and a community standpoint. In efforts to grow communities, particularly in areas like Southern California, multi-purpose properties will serve specific neighborhood needs and increase engagement. With the cost of land and construction rising, developers need to be as creative as possible in their property development and planning to reach a wider range of users.
R.D. Olson Construction Cracks the Top 400 List
June 16, 2015 – Electronic News Record
Irvine, CA - Thanks to the hard work and dedication of all the R.D. Olson Construction team, we were able to get on the ENR (Engineering News-Record) Top 400 Contractors List in the United States. This award is a great measure of the success R.D. Olson has seen in the last few years and exemplifies the organization's continuous pursuit of excellence and top notch service to the hospitality, restaurant, multi-family, and entertainment sectors. We debut on the chart at #374 but with steadfast dedication, R.D. Olson hopes to continue to climb the charts in 2016.
You can view the complete list of contractors here.
R.D. Olson Construction Among the Top Commercial Construction Companies in Orange County
June 15, 2015 – Orange County Business Journal
R.D. Olson was just announced among the Top Commercial Construction Companies in Orange County, CA. Up one spot from last year's #13, R.D. Olson is proud of its projects in the last year. Amazing completions of the Courtyard San Jose, Courtyard Irvine Spectrum, Hotel Marina Del Rey, 27 Seventy Five Apartments and Catherine's Terrace at the Descanso Beach Club, just to name a few, have helped propel R.D. Olson one step closer to becoming one of the largest general contractor firms in Southern California. With new incredible projects in the works now, 2016 should be an even greater success.
Strathmore (Studio 11024) Project Highlighted in the UCLA Daily Bruin
June 4, 2015 – The Daily Bruin
NEW APARTMENT BUILDINGS IN NORTH VILLAGE PUT FOCUS ON DESIGN By Roberto Luna, Jr., 6/4/15
The green and white metal building on Strathmore Avenue, surrounded by drought-resistant plants, stands out from other North Village apartments in the area.
Architects for these new apartments said they aimed to add to the variety of buildings in the North Village by using glass to make rooms look bigger and to make them more modern.
Students can now lease apartments at Studio 11024, Ophir Terrace and the new university apartment building on Glenrock Avenue.
Some students said they think the new buildings will be more comfortable than older ones, while others questioned their affordability and new design.
Bill Wilhelm, president of R.D. Olson Construction, said the goal was to construct trendy and eco-friendly apartments in the new building, Studio 11024, which is located at 11024 Strathmore Drive.
Wilhelm said the company redesigned the building’s exterior as new materials were introduced. He said he thinks changing from plaster and bricks to metal and wood improves the structure’s ambience.
Studio 11024 is intended to be high-end, but the building was still designed with students in mind, Wilhelm added. Read more here.
R.D. Olson Completes Ground-Up Multi-family Project in Westwood, California
May 29, 2015 – Multi-Housing News
"Studio 11024" to Serve the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Community
Westwood, CA - R.D. Olson Construction is announcing the completion of Studio 11024, a 31-unit, five-story, 42,690-square-foot multi-family property in Westwood, California. The Irvine, California-based general contractor was selected by Phoenix Property Company, a Texas-based real estate development and investment company. R.D. Olson broke ground on Studio 11024 in September 2013.
Located two blocks west of University of California Los Angeles’ (UCLA’s) campus and a few blocks north of Westwood Village, Studio 11024 was built to cater to students, faculty and the academic community. Set back from the sidewalk, the project provides an indoor/outdoor experience, open space for landscaping, and parking built underground to engage pedestrians at the street edge.
"Studio 11024’s site context opposite Richard Neutra’s historic landmark, Strathmore Apartments, had a major impact on the project," said Bill Wilhelm, president of R.D. Olson Construction. "Our team was able to work with Lorcan O' Herlihy Architectsto successfully navigate the challenges of a 40-foot cross slope and building next to a historic landmark. To enhance the pedestrian experience, the building’s massing steps up from two-to five-stories creating a cohesive adjacency to the historic site."
Studio 11024’s exterior is marked by a fluted white metal skin with contemporary green accents, eco-friendly landscaping, and two, planted roof deck areas on the third and fifth floors. In addition to these urban garden settings, the building’s common area amenities include a fitness center with a yoga studio, a resident lounge, a business center, and secured, underground garage parking.
In addition to Studio 11024, R.D. Olson Construction is currently under construction on seven projects based in Los Angeles County including the Village at Calabasas in Calabasas; STK Restaurant at the W Los Angeles; the Hampton Inn & Suites in Glendale; Residence Inn by Marriott in Pasadena; SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Burbank; Califa Office Building in Van Nuys; and Bicycle Casino Hotel in Bell Gardens.
Surf’s up at R.D. Olson Camp
January 15, 2015 – Hotel Business
SAN ONOFRE, CA- R. D. Olson Construction hosts an annual Surf Camp each September to bring its team together with industry partners to enjoy a day of surfing and networking.
The beach party is a true "board meeting," complete with industry insiders and opportunities to show off wave-riding skills on the famous sets of San Onofre, or to learn new tips from professional surfing instructors.
This year more than 130 guests attended this networking event and beach party. The day started with surfing and lessons, following by relaxing on the beach with shaved ice, live, Beach Boys-style music, refreshing drinks and a catered dinner.
The R.D. Olson Surf Camp provides an opportunity-and unconventional- venue to catch up with teammates and industry partners and to relax with friends and family.
