Guy F. Atkinson Construction

Specialty: Heavy-civil construction

Management: Bob Adams, regional vice president

Founded: 1927

Local office: Renton (company is owned by Clark Construction Group, based in Bethesda, Md.)

2008 revenues: N/A

2009 project revenues: N/A

Current projects: Interstate 405 South Bellevue widening Interstate 5/Highway 16 Nalley Valley interchange

Photo courtesy of WSDOT Subcontractor R.W. Rhine demolished the Wilburton Tunnel last fall as part of a $200 million project Atkinson Construction is performing to widen Interstate 405 between 112th Avenue Southeast and Southeast Eighth Street in Bellevue. Atkinson's work should be finished later this year.

How's Atkinson doing these days? Fine, thank you.

The heavy-civil construction company is working on two large contracts for the state Department of Transportation -- an Interstate 405 widening project in Bellevue and the Nalley Valley interchange project in Tacoma -- and has its eye on several other contracts that will be bid out in the coming months.

Stimulus projects

While work may have dried up in other construction sectors, the federal stimulus package that passed in February will ensure that infrastructure projects will continue to get built. Washington's share is $340 million.

The state is well positioned to take advantage of the new funding, said Bob Adams, Atkinson's regional vice president, because the 2005 gas tax increase allowed the state to get a head start on shoring up cash for transportation projects.

"The stimulus will advance some of those starts," he said.

Atkinson, for example, plans to bid on another I-405 project in Bellevue, currently in pre-qualification, that received $30 million in stimulus money, but will receive its primary funding -- $247 million -- from the gas tax.

The city of Redmond is also in line to receive $11 million for a new bridge over state Route 520 that will connect parts of the Microsoft campus. That's another project Atkinson plans to pursue.

Adams expressed concern, though, that with the stimulus funds already on the way, Congress may fail to renew funding for infrastructure projects that the stimulus won't support. "Funding is very dependent upon Congressional actions," he said. "It's very important to remind Congress that they need to continue funding the system."

More bidders

While falling commodity prices have been a boon to contractors, Adams thinks any benefits will be short-lived. If material providers are forced to close their doors, he said, the shortage of providers could increase prices all the same.

Another effect of the recession is that more contractors are chasing fewer jobs. Adams said he's seeing firms bid for projects in market sectors they're not familiar with, replete with "pricing that looks curious."

"That's a concern for all of us in the construction industry," Adams said, "doing work that's not in our traditional core."