Notes from the Road: Rick Brostrom Rewinds the Tape on 39 KA Years
When he retires this month, KA Vice President and Senior Project Manager Rick Brostrom wraps up a 39-year* KA career that includes management of over 9.7 million square feet of construction and over $1.15 billion volume, spanning seven states from the Upper Midwest to Florida and Hawaii. (*He actually joined KA in 1979, but doesn’t count a short intermission early in his career). As he completes four decades of traveling the map and running the numbers, we asked him for some of the highlights.
You definitely have construction in your DNA, with four generations of KAers in your family. What would you say were the family traits that helped all of you in your career paths?
RICK BROSTROM: My grand uncle Hjalmar was a carpenter in the 1940s. My dad, John, was director of field operations for many years; my brother Dave has had an illustrious career as a project superintendent; and his son Mark is a carpenter supt. I think we all share family pride and a real sense of achievement from the work we’ve done. Seeing permanent results, seeing projects in use for many years is very rewarding.
You began at KA early in your career and swiftly were assigned to work in what was then our KA of Texas office in Dallas. What was your first project in Texas?
RICK BROSTROM: Plaza of the Americas, a 26-story, 641,000 SF office building with 254 parking stalls above grade.
The 1.4 million SF 3M Research and Development complex in Austin, Texas still stands among the largest projects KA has ever undertaken. What stands out for you about that project?
RICK BROSTROM: Research and Development complex with 8, 5-story laboratory structures connected by nodes and a 5-story office building with open paseo link to the lab buildings. The rocky soil required blasting for foundations. We were working with a Texas architect and construction management firm, with different approaches on management and expectations.
You garnered the reputation of being a large project specialist. Share some of your notes from those efforts.
RICK BROSTROM: Mystic Lake Expansion, Prior Lake, MN in 1992– 226,553 SF constructed with gaming facility in operation. 6 months of construction.
Hilton and Towers Hotel, Minneapolis– Massive 1.8 million SF project in downtown Minneapolis. 806 rooms. 25 stories with 5 levels of underground parking, about 50 feet below grade. We had starting roofing when 1991 Halloween snow storm dropped 30 inches of snow. The project took up an entire city block with minimal street closures and downtown traffic considerations with pouring cast in place concrete and assembling massive trusses to support the roof of the 25,000 SF ballroom.
Spotlight 29 Casino, Indio CA- New freestanding 76,000 SF Casino completed in 5 months. Soils were desert sands that took over a million gallons of water to saturate the sand to allow footings to be poured. The iron workers had to erect structural steel wearing special hot mitt gloves because steel was so hot it would burn. Also high winds would require a water truck to water all of the disturbed areas. (Roads, parking lot and stage areas would send plumes of sand across the adjoining freeway with EPA threats and fines. I personally leased a water truck and treated the soils twice a day/7 days a week. Managed this intense project without a Project Assistant.
One Kalakaua Living, Honolulu, HI– This was 15 stories, 274,133 SF with two levels of parking below grade. Dewatering was a big challenge, pumping into settlement tanks and discharging filtered water into storm sewer systems. We were working with completely new subcontractors, with many languages and multiple nationalities represented. We had signage everywhere that hard hat was required for entry. One day quite an elderly woman in a pink hard hat wheeled her cart through the staging lot to gain access to the grocery store across the street. She said she was compliant.
Miccosukee Resort, Miami, FL- This was a 274,133 SF, 9 story, 302 room hotel for a tribal nation client. We had 2 hurricanes whip through during construction. We added 2,500-car parking lot in the Everglades, complete with snakes and alligators. One Saturday, I grabbed a BBQ sandwich and returned to the site and a guard cautioned me that a 6-foot gator had just crawled under our office trailer.
Black Bear Resort, Carlton, MN– This was a 12 story PT Post Tension Concrete, 250-room hotel for the Fond du Lac Band of Superior Chippewa. We built a new facility around an existing, very active 24/7 operation. We erected a 2,500 car parking ramp, a new convention center to act as the temporary casino, demoed and erected a brand new state of the art casino, all adjacent to an existing hotel complex. Traffic changes were almost a daily event. Our workforce included a 25 percent tribal component as well as city trades workers, all of whom were all valuable to the success of the project.
MPOB Office Building, Brooklyn Center, MN- This project comprised a 281,354 SF 5-story office building, annex building and 300+ parking ramp for use by the FBI Field Office. All workmen had to be fingerprinted and with a clean record. FBI agents were on site 24/7 with one secured employee entrance with badges and construction entrances with a posted FBI guard to inspect trucks. This was a very successful project working with Dennis Feela and Dave Brostrom as superintendents. And my nephew Ross Brostrom was lead foreman/superintendent for Kelleher Construction pouring concrete. Great and knowledgeable FBI agents, government PM’s, and the GSA construction manager.
Gundersen Health Legacy Building- LaCrosse, WI- The Legacy building was a new hospital facility comprising 418,408 SF and 6 floors. I was about 99% complete with the FBI-MPOB project and received a call from KA management that our Sr. PM had suffered a stroke and to mobilize to take over his position. Great KA staff with Chris Patraw, Dave Stark, Jessica Masterson on the PM team. All knew their responsibilities and providing a safe and quality project to the owner and community.
We negotiated with the help and guidance of Camille Helou to finish out the tenant areas early during the construction of the Legacy building addition, which resulted in an additional $42 million of work put in place without a time extension. The owner’s staff was super knowledgeable and worked out numerous and almost daily issues. High profile project requiring many tours for local dignitaries, mayor, governor, senators; as well as donations to the hospital requiring almost daily tours. Tours were also required for all employees working in the new facility to ensure a clear knowledge of the working environment. The Legacy building opened almost immediately after the city/state health inspector allowed the facility to be opened.
Rochester Hilton, Rochester, MN– This 19-story, 264-hotel room hotel was constructed on a thimble of a site, one-quarter of a block. The foundations mere inches from a 36-story apartment tower. The city parking ramp took half the block. Materials staging was a key challenge, as was keeping Broadway open as a main artery through downtown Rochester.
Your advice to others coming in and up in this industry?
RICK: There are so many leading opportunities for men and women in project management. Hard work brings great yields. If you want to be successful, spend the time. Be adaptable to gain more knowledge, enjoy life and most importantly, enjoy your family.
View Comments
All my best to you Rick on your retirement! Your knowledge and expertise, your years of experience on complex, large-scale projects, your professionalism and your patience on Gundersen’s legacy building were impressive. We’re forever indebted to you, Tom Jorris, Chris, Dave, and so many others for their work on the project. While you went from job site to job site and have the memories of tangible work well-done, it’s the lasting legacy and memories you leave behind for the clients that you worked with that you can hold dear. When the time comes where I too enter retirement, I’ll remember you and others and the lasting impact you’ve had on my career. A simple thank you just doesn’t seem enough. Thank you.