Smart Moves

Before starting his own construction business in 2004, Mark Stevens worked on hospitals, including Lee Memorial Hospital and HealthPark Medical Center, during his tenure with Compass Construction. So it made sense that he would focus on building medical facilities with his own company. Stevens Construction’s first job was a building for an eye specialist. More hospital work followed along with more doctors’ offices, ambulatory care centers and other medical facilities.

It turned out to be a fortunate move. Homebuilding and most other sectors of the construction industry—once the flagship of Southwest Florida’s economy—have ground to a halt. But a few niches, such as medical facilities and government-backed projects, are still marching forward, albeit at a slightly slower pace.

"While home construction is down in Florida, commercial and niche construction—especially medical facilities—remain vibrant," says Edie Ousley, spokeswoman for the Florida Home Builders Association in Tallahassee. "We’ve seen some drop-off in nonresidential construction, but it’s nowhere near the decline in housing."

The same holds true nationally. Private, nonresidential construction spending increased 10.3 percent through November, and by 1 percent from October to November, according to Associated Builders and Contractors. Public, nonresidential construction was up 7.8 percent year-over-year. Residential private construction, meanwhile, dropped 22.8 percent from November 2007 to November 2008.

The healthcare building sector has slowed, but the bottom hasn’t dropped out, as in the housing sector, Stevens says. That’s lured former homebuilders and others to try to break into the medical market.

"Things are becoming more competitive," he says. "A couple of years ago, the competition would come from the smaller guys coming after us. Now we’re seeing the large, multifamily developers enter our market, going for the $2 million to $3 million projects they wouldn’t have bothered with before."