Chair and CEO: Bob Helsell
Specialty: Highways, bridges, environmental construction, landfill capping
Founded: 1911
1999 revenues: $83 million
2000 revenues: NA
Largest current project: Bridge and HOV lane widening near Interstate 5 and 405

In the aftermath of Initiative 695, Bob Helsell is keeping a close eye on the state Legislature. As chairman and chief executive officer of Wilder Construction, Helsell has a strong interest in how the Legislature will deal with state Department of Transportation’s post-695 budget.

Wilder depends on government contracts for up to 90 percent of its work on highways, bridges and landfill-capping.

"You’re talking to the kind of contractor who will be hardest hit by the failure of funding for transportation," Helsell said. "So we’re very concerned about where all this leads."

As a member of a blue-ribbon committee studying the issues surrounding transportation funding, Helsell said he hopes to convince lawmakers that funding road projects is essential.

"We have to keep highways and roads in good shape for safety and transportation ease, and we have congestion and mobility issues as well," he said. "Freight mobility is so important - if we can’t get goods off the docks and to trains and to other states, then the whole network and imports and exports will start to dwindle."

Helsell said transportation issues will soon rank as high as education as the most pressing issue in the state.

With so much of his business hanging in the balance, Helsell said he will consider increasing the portion of business Wilder does with the private sector.

"We would not go in a different direction (in terms of specialty) but we might attempt to do more privately financed work - subdivision work, private roads - anything that doesn’t fit under the transportation budget," he said.

While a typical year finds Wilder doing 85 to 90 percent government work, he said in some years the company has done as much as 20 to 25 percent private. "Every year is a different mix of jobs," he said.

Still, the company has high hopes that the Legislature will dedicate enough funding to boost business again. "We don’t think anybody missed the point," regarding the need for road work, he said. "I think people know it’s a serious problem."