Essex Builders receives the 2021 Construction Firm of the Year Award
BOSTON- Founded in 1984, Essex Builders Corp. is a full-service general contracting and construction management firm that engages in residential, mixed-use, healthcare, institutional, industrial/office and retail construction projects. It is a leading merit-shop provider of construction services in New England. Essex Builders focuses on excellence in the private sector.
Since its founding, Essex has established lasting relationships, not only with clients, but with numerous sub-contractors, vendors, architects and engineers. This gives clients a wider array of possibilities in terms of materials, designs, and overall project management. The company’s successful track record and capabilities make Essex a “single-source” of construction services for a wide variety of clients. Essex prides itself on client retention and is grounded on the core value of teamwork, consistently exceeding client expectations by ensuring that all team members are focused on the same goal. Essex strongly believes that the critical aspects of quality, cost, and schedule are best achieved when the contractor, design team and client set common goals and combine their efforts to achieve those goals. Working in alignment with this philosophy, Essex has delivered a portfolio of complex ground up developments in addition to repositioning of current assets.
As the second generation of the Essex Builders team, Michelle O’Neil has been engrossed in the construction industry since a young age and has acquired a deep understanding of the business. She joined Essex Builders in 2014, bringing more than 10 years of commercial real estate finance and investment experience. In her role as President, she provides leadership and oversight for the company’s day-to-day operations, as well as strategic direction of long-term goals, business plans and policies. Her strong client relationship skills along with her broad industry experience are ideal for managing Business Development, Client Relations, and overseeing Business Operations. She is an active member of CREW Boston, National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC), NAIOP Massachusetts and the Real Estate Finance Association Boston (REFA).
In her efforts to lead and grow the firm, O’Neil is aided by Dominic DeChiara, who serves as Vice President of Construction Operations at Essex Builders. He has over 10 years of experience in the construction industry and his client service approach to construction management has developed trusted relationships with clients. In his role he is responsible for conducting contract negotiations, developing cost estimates, building and coordinating project schedules, managing budget controls and establishing project control plans.
Notable Essex Builders projects in 2021 include 14 Ward St. in Somerville, MA, The Residence at The Dior in Dedham, MA and Bow Market in Somerville, MA.
- 14 Ward St.: Essex Builders is currently working on this luxury apartment building located in a tight urban neighborhood with several site-specific challenges. The project consists of ground‐up construction of 24 luxury residential units with below grade parking. Essex was selected early in the process and served as the Pre-Construction Manager for a repeat client.
- The Residence at The Dior: Essex Builders worked with ACP Properties to construct a mixed-use project in Dedham, adjacent to Legacy Place and within walking distance of the commuter rail. The Residence at The Dior offers urban style living with all the benefits of living in the suburbs. The 90,000 SF building features 48 residences and two levels of covered parking. In addition, residents are able to enjoy the community’s 11,000 square-foot retail space.
- Bow Market: Essex Builders Corp. was the Construction Manager for this 25,000 SF renovation/conversion of an industrial building into an urban open market. The project is in Somerville’s Union Square and consists of retail, food vendors and entertainment venues.
Essex Builders received the 2021 Construction Firm of the Year Award at the Boston Real Estate Times Excellence Awards on October 29 in a virtual ceremony via Zoom. To see a recording of the ceremony, click here to watch.
