Puyallup-based construction firm with long family-owned history now employee owned
A familiar construction company name in the Tacoma area is now an employee-owned entity.
Puyallup-based Absher Construction, in a June 1 announcement, said the 82-year-old company has transitioned from a family-owned company to an employee stock ownership plan structure.
In its release, the company said the new ownership structure plan was first announced in a meeting with workers April 29.
In a statement, CEO Dan Absher said, “When he reached the end of his career, my grandfather, company founder Barney Absher, passed the company to his son Tom and his top employee at the time, Clark Helle Sr. For more than five decades, the company was owned by our two families, the Abshers and the Helles.
“As we engaged in succession planning over the past several years, deciding to transition to an employee-owned company aligned with our company culture and values, and deepens our commitment to our team members who are responsible for the success of our projects throughout the region.”
Absher is retaining its current executive team, including CEO Absher, Jeff Richards, president; James Christianson, vice president of operations; Curt Gimmestad, vice president; and Billie Otto, chief strategy and risk officer.
“By investing in our employees, we are empowering them to grow their own futures as they build and deliver outstanding facilities that are the backbone of our community,” Richards said in a statement.
Richards became the fourth president in the company’s history in 2018, the first non-family member to serve in the position.
Absher, with offices also in Bellevue, offers pre-construction and construction services to private and public clients, including in education, recreation, transportation, federal contracts and multifamily housing.
Featured projects on the company’s website include Jefferson Yards Apartments in Tacoma, Pierce Transit Maintenance and Operations Base Infrastructure Improvement in Lakewood, and the Evergreen Elementary School replacement in Key Peninsula.
Absher is also involved in the redevelopment of the Northgate Mall property in Seattle and Sound Transit’s Northgate Station, among several other projects.
In 2021, the Marriott Tacoma Downtown hotel, a Yareton/Absher project, was honored by the Economic Development Board of Tacoma-Pierce County as one of the county’s top 10 economic development projects.
Absher currently has 284 employees, of which 192 are eligible to participate in the employee stock ownership plan, according to Erin Mayer, director of marketing for the company.
“All employees not covered under collective bargaining agreements, plus union superintendents and assistant superintendents are eligible,” Mayer said via email.
