by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
At one point last week, Hurricane Bill was a Category 4 storm, packing winds of 135 mph. As a meteorological event, it gave weathermen something to talk about for several days and provided surfers on the Eastern Seaboard a weekend of great waves.
Outside of that, Hurricane Bill was a bit of a non-event, especially for a storm that size.
But, what if it did come ashore in Florida or somewhere else in the Southeast? What if another storm later this season hits this area and causes damage similar to that of Tropical Storm Fay last Labor Day weekend? What if your home is damaged by water or fire?
There are many companies you can call, but what are you getting? In Coastal Reconstruction you are getting 23 years of a business co-owned by two families that has primarily specialized in commercial reconstruction but has branched out into residential reconstruction.
“We specialize in fire, wind and water damage,” said Jake Brewer, operations manager for the company that’s also owned by the McCurdy family. “We deal with insurance companies to help restore property.”
Brewer operates the 38-employee company along with Scott McCurdy. It was incorporated in 1986 by Don Brewer and O.W. McCurdy Jr. The two ownership sides couldn’t be more different: the Brewers handle the construction while the McCurdys handle the sales.
“It has its challenges,” said Brewer.
The company isn’t limited to just Florida. They have four offices in Florida but operate as a disaster contractor in 18 states as far north as Maryland and as far west as Texas.
Brewer said about 80-90 percent of the company’s work comes from disaster reconstruction and that ranges from significant fire damage to flooding and other water damage to wind damage from storms.
“Work-wise, we probably do more water work, but fire damage costs a lot more,” said Ben Zeigler, head of sales.
Zeigler said the company gets its business one of two ways: either cold-calling or through references from insurance companies. And, the process is pretty simple. The company’s sales representatives work with insurance adjusters to reach a fair price on reconstruction. That negotiation process is pretty cut and dried, too. An accepted scope of work assures there’s very little wiggle room for either the insurance adjuster or Coastal Reconstruction. Once the price of a job is determined, Brewer assigns one of his many subcontractors to the job. Part of the contract with the homeowner includes permitting and other administrative costs associated with the construction work.
“We cannot negotiate price,” said Brewer. “We can negotiate the scope of work per the price list.”
It’s almost terrible to say, but storms are good for business. Tropical Storm Fay proved that.
“We had 80 jobs going at one time statewide,” said Zeigler. “About 23 to 30 of those were in Jacksonville. The others were in Melbourne and Orlando.”
Business doesn’t always come from storms. Brewer relayed a story about a customer who ended up having thousands in water damage because they never used a room at their house. Right before family came into town, they discovered a pipe had been leaking for two months. While that may not qualify as a “disaster” through the public’s eyes, to that customer it certainly fits the bill.
Brewer said he also understands that time is a factor in dealing with a customer who’s looking at major repairs, whether it’s a home or commercial building. Coastal Reconstruction also has a Rapid Response program. Through it, a homeowner can hire the company to perform initial work securing, tarping and boarding up a home.
“A lot of time we do the disaster work right away and a lot of times we do all the work,” said Brewer.
356-2466