Building Nevada - December 2005

Burnett Haase Construction

Dedicated to Diversification

by Tara Maras

Grow carefully, not foolishly. It’s a mantra that business partners Ross Burnett and Chris Haase have stood behind since introducing Burnett Haase Construction to Southern Nevada a decade ago. Since then, the duo, who share more than 35 years of construction management and real estate development experience, have carefully grown their portfolio to over 2 million square feet of buildings in Southern Nevada.

The company’s services range from feasibility analysis, project schedule tracking and entitlement, engineer and architect coordination to pre-construction services. The end result of those efforts in layman’s terms: construction of such locations as the 55,000-square-foot offices known as Stephanie Beltway and the combined 104,000 square feet of office space that comprise Seven Hills Business Park Buildings I, II and III, just to name a few.

According to Burnett, the company’s multi-disciplined approach, which includes construction and management services for commercial and industrial projects, has proven successful, but it’s the employees behind the approach who make it possible. While attracting and retaining skilled employees is an industry-wide concern, Haase said employee training programs, promoting from within and providing good compensation have helped Burnett Haase Construction maintain high standards of quality and integrity.

Finding good subcontractors can also be a challenge in the competitive construction market. "A lot of our work is subcontracted, and we stick with a select group we know and trust," Haase said.

Building materials have been escalating in price so rapidly that "penciling a project" has proven increasingly difficult, according to Burnett. "We’re definitely dealing with the rising costs of construction," he said. "Costs that were stable just a few years ago are now rising by huge percentages, sometimes more than 30 percent over the course of a few short years." He listed steel and ready-mix concrete as two staples whose prices have recently "gone crazy." Haase added, "They are huge components to our business. There is demand for these and dozens of other products worldwide. When there is an increase in demand, suppliers raise costs."

To balance their work in the construction industry, Burnett and Haase have turned to diversification. More specifically, they have turned to the business of real estate. By developing Business Properties Group, an affiliate of Burnett Haase Construction, the team not only has the opportunity to buy land and construct buildings, they can own and lease those buildings.

Craig Promenade in North Las Vegas, Black Mountain Marketplace in Henderson and Summergate Retail Center in Las Vegas are just a few retail centers constructed by Burnett Haase Construction and developed by Business Properties Group. In addition to retail space, the companies have also produced more than 175,000 square feet of office/warehouse space in the Las Vegas Valley.

As part of their diversification strategy, the pair are likewise developing and managing a chain of gas station convenience stores known as 24/7 Express. Locations at Stephanie Street and American Pacific Drive, Sunset Road and Decatur Boulevard and Craig Road and Revere Street are currently open, with anywhere from five to 10 additional stores planned in the next few years.

As for their dedication to diversification, the partners said they feel lucky to have grown their businesses in Las Vegas. "For all of our ventures, we apply what we think is basic common sense," Burnett said. "When we see a need in the market – whether it’s for a better-designed office or a convenience store with good lighting and lots of windows – we apply common sense principles and go forward."