BUILD TO SERVE | LICENSE # 853288

September 2020 Newsletter

News

September 2020 Newsletter

Watkins Landmark’s September 2020 Newsletter ~ Padres Playoff Addition

Hello,
First of all, I would to thank all of our readers who made the August 2020 ~ The Dog Days of Summer our most read newsletter to date. I personally take great pride in writing our monthly newsletter. According to the statistics kept on Constant Contact, the Watkins Landmark Newsletter has close to double of the industry average of opens. We use this newsletter as a vehicle to show the culture of Watkins Landmark that separates us from our competition. We also like to use the opportunity to discuss the work we have in process as well as our finished Landmark projects. So thank you again to our loyal readers who have followed us over the years.

As we have said in previous newsletters, the roots of Watkins Landmark stem from Petco Park and the San Diego Padres. In the Summer of 2000, Clark Construction moved me and my family from Palm Desert to Carlsbad so I could be one of the Project Managers on what would eventually be called PETCO Park. Ever since then, I have been an avid (and tortured) Padres fan. More importantly, Watkins Landmark has hired several people from that incredible original project management team who were part of the San Diego Ballpark Builders joint venture. The joint venture that built PETCO Park consisted of the following general contractors: Clark Construction, Nielsen Dillingham & Doug E Barnhardt Builders. Since PETCO Park’s opening, WLC has been fortunate enough to have built a few tenant improvement projects at the Ballpark that originally brought me to town. So being a Padre fan has been about business as well as just being a passionate fan. Go Pads!

Our first article in today’s newsletter is about Watkins Landmark’s most recent desert project. As we stated in a project award announcement a few weeks ago, The DBK Group awarded WLC their most recent Vintage Club project. The Vintage Club is one of the most exclusive gated communities in the world. Many of the titans of industry, celebrities, professional athletes and politicians keep a winter home in the Vintage Club. Watkins Landmark is currently building the Portola Road Guardhouse and Expanded Entry project. As you might imagine, with all the big name residences in the Vintage Club, they take their security with a level of professionalism that is usually only seen in the Secret Service or other high level government security agencies.

Our 2nd article is actually an announcement of an exciting addition as well as a promotion within the Watkins Landmark team. The addition and team restructuring have been made in no small part due to the Coronavirus. In WLC’s internal planning on how to confront a post COVID 19 business world, our executive team felt we needed to make these strategic moves for what will surely be a new economic climate. In restructuring our executives responsibilities, we have take the first of many upcoming steps to our current company’s management structure to be more competitive as the business climate continues to change.
Thank you for all of your comments and suggestions for our newsletter over the years. We truly try to incorporate the best of the remarks into our periodical. You can always click on my name and email me at Jody James Watkins with any observations or critiques.

Sincerely,

Jody James Watkins

 

Jody James Watkins
CEO/Founder
WATKINS LANDMARK CONSTRUCTION
San Diego / Inland Empire


Vintage Club Portola Guardhouse

WLC Builds a New Guardhouse and Expanded Entrance Project

Vintage Club Portola Guardhouse

Projects like the Vintage Club Guardhouse and Expanded Entrance are what was meant when Landmark was put in our company name. The neighborhood which is secluded in the southern portion of the City of Indian Wells, is one of the most exclusive communities in the world. As mentioned in our introductory article, this locality, albeit mostly winter residences, is home of some of the world’s most successful business moguls, professional athletes, celebrities, politicians etc… This is also the first of what will be many projects with the DBK Group. Kaveh Daryaie, the CEO of the DBK Group is is one of the most in demand designers not only in the desert, but Napa Valley as well. Many of his clients can be found on the Forbes 400. He and his firm take great pride in designing Landmark projects. While a typical Guardhouse and Entrance project might not be considered a Landmark by most. However when you consider the status of the Vintage Club as one of the world’s most exclusive communities, the quality of each improvement project is required to be a Landmark.

Vintage Club Work

Most of the world has been hit hard economically by the Coronavirus. However, not many regions have been as hard as the Inland Empire. The desert economy is deeply dependent on the leisure industry. While it now seems like an eternity a go, the cancellation of the BNP Paribas Open was the first domino to fall in the sports entertainment industry. That is taking 500,000 visitors out of the desert economy. The subsequent cancellations / postponements of the Coachella & Stagecoach Music Festivals as well as the men’s and women’s professional golf tournaments pushed another 500,000 tourists out of the Inland Empire. With a million plus vacationers being taken out of the local economy, you can literally see the tumbleweeds blowing across Highway 111. Fortunately a few clients have seen this as an opportunity to improve their facilities while they have little to no visitors. We are very fortunate that the Vintage Club is one of those clients.

From our original discussions with The DBK Group, we knew the Vintage Club Guardhouse & Expanded Entrance project would have a very tight and fast paced schedule. With this schedule mandated by the client, we also knew the logistics needed as well as the coordination necessary in working with a highly professional security department, this project would be challenging to say the least. That is even before you calculate the level of quality demanded by the HOA for one of the world’s most exclusive neighborhoods. And while the project is not complete as of yet, our project team of Obhi Dewan, Senior Project Engineer; Robert Veague, Superintendent and Missy Manning, Project Accountant have done an extraordinary job keeping our client happy and the project on schedule. Great job guys (and Missy)!!

Vintage Club Duct Work


A Significant Promotion and Addition at Watkins Landmark Construction

Dennis DizonDennis Dizon Promoted to President!
It is my privilege to announce the promotion of Dennis Dizon to the position of President at Watkins Landmark. This promotion is something that has been in the works for quite some time. Going forward in a Post COVID Virus world, dividing my and Dennis’s responsibilities between us based on each of our unique abilities will make WLC a stronger company. The inspiration for this promotion came from a couple of different sources. First, Craig Coppola (minority partner of WLC) gave a presentation for my company on aligning the organizational chart based on each of our staff’s unique abilities. The second was the book Craig shared with me called Rocket Fuel. That book cites the success of some of the successful and historic companies that divided the top two executives’ responsibilities based on their unique abilities.

Dennis has consistently demonstrated our values by being persistent and taking pride in his work, all while remaining trustworthy and personable. To me, he has demonstrated these values since the first time we met on the PETCO Park project in the Summer of 2000. At that time, we were both Project Managers in the San Diego Ballpark Builders Joint Venture team. From our first meeting, I knew that Dennis was somebody I wanted to work with throughout my career. I am incredibly optimistic about Dennis taking over the President’s role, which frankly consists of management responsibilities that are much more aligned with his unique abilities than mine. As CEO / Founder, my responsibilities will narrow to a much more intense focus on business development. Which is also my unique ability. Please take time out of your day to congratulate Dennis on this momentous promotion.

Jody James Watkins
CEO / Founder
Watkins Landmark Construction

Welcome aboard Geoffrey Sherman!!!!
Watkins Landmark is very proud to bring aboard Geoffrey Sherman as a Senior Project Manager! Geoff has been a well-respected construction professional in Southern California over the past many decades. He has worked both on the Owner and General Contractor’s side of the construction business. Watkins Landmark first worked with Geoff on the Heights Site Development & Pump Stations Project throughout the mountains surrounding the Maderas Golf Club in Poway. At that time, Watkins Landmark was a company of under 7 people and Geoff worked for the developer Excel Realty Holdings. The Heights project had more than its share of challenges. Between the Witch Creek Fire scorching the mountains of construction equipment, work in place, and all of the indigenous foliage to the subsequent mudslides due to torrential rains and a complete lack of flora fauna, the Heights project was under duress through most of the construction schedule. Throughout these projects, difficulties developed a mutual respect between Geoff and Watkins Landmark. The respect has only grown over the years as our paths have continued to cross. Again, it is with great pride that we welcome Geoffrey Sherman aboard!!!!

Heights Project
One of the many incredibly scenic photos from the Height project!