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Volume 19
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Number 1
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JANUARY 2017
95 years young
Plumbing people
L-R: Andy Mitchell, Melvin Mitchell, Bill Mitchell, Erin Clementson and Lane Mitchell celebrate 95 years in business.
L-R: Tyler Smith and Greg Smith carry the family business that dates back to the 1940s.
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t is hard to find something that is still around after 95 years, whether it be a business, a building or a person. However, G.W. Mitchell Construction gets to reflect on its success and its journey as it celebrated its 95th anniversary in December. Bill Mitchell has been with the company for 33 years and is proud to see the company remain in the family’s hands. “It’s really a big deal to able to continue a family business that started in 1921,” Bill said. “My grandfather started it and the second generation was my dad and his two brothers. My dad is still active in the company at 85 years old, and one of my uncles comes to the office everyday. He’s 91.”
Bill’s father, Melvin Mitchell, is the chairman of the board and graduated from MIT with his civil engineering degree. Bill received his education at Texas A&M in civil engineering and learned the ins and outs of the business with handson work as a teenager. “Definitely hands-on experience is helpful,” Bill says. “I started working in the construction business when I was 16 years old. I had done it all when I was a teenager and it made me really appreciate getting into the office because those guys work really hard.” Throughout his years in the company, Bill has seen big changes while some things have remained the same. continued on Page 24
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he inside and outside of the E.L. Smith Plumbing building looks rustic and gives a feel of an older time. Fourth-generation plumber Tyler Smith is keeping the traditions alive and well along with his father, Greg Smith. Tyler Smith’s great-grandfather was a plumber in the 1920s and his grandfather opened up E.L. Smith in 1948. “My grandfather started the company and his dad helped him start it,” Smith said. “As a kid growing up, I was always around it and came down here for Christmas parties to hang out and see my dad. As a kid, my dad said ‘Get up. If you want extra money, you have to earn it.’ “Honestly, I want to keep it pretty much like it is. I want to carry it on but
change and tweak a few things here and there. Maybe the look of the building on the outside and some stuff on the trucks.” To be in business for almost 70 years, a company has to have a good foundation. “My grandpa and my dad employed people they knew for over 30 years,” Smith said. “We’ve been good at we do. We’re honest and we’re trustworthy. We give you the price of what it will cost to do the job and that’s it.” Tyler is a supervisor at the company and Greg Smith is the president and owner but is training Tyler to take over the business. E.L. Smith and its 12 employees does continued on Page 24
Wedding and event wonderland
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n Tejas Rodeo Company’s plot of land in Bulverde, they have created a destination. Not only can you see a rodeo, visit the steakhouse and enjoy the weekend in a bunkhouse or casita, now you can have a business party or your big day with the addition of the Western Sky Wedding & Event Center. Tom Fore Restorations was the general contractor on the project, building the event center from the ground up. “We did all the dressing rooms, bathrooms, stage and show rooms,” Tom Fore said. “There’s a full-length porch on the front and back. It was all metal studs and we did the finish-out on that. It’s now all covered in rough cedar. That was a real job.” The 7,500-sf building was finished in July and is open for weddings and other events. The owners, Yancey James and Trey Martin built the building to match
the demand for an indoor venue. One of the many unique features of the building is the corrugated metal on sections of the interior and exterior. “It comes from the factory with a coating on it, and when you take it out, it immediately starts rusting,” Fore said. “So the whole outside of the building is corrugated, rusted metal. It’s supposed to look like that. We could leave sheets out and come back the next day, it’d be solid rust.” Fore, who is a one-man operation, subbed out multiple jobs for the woodwork, masonry and cement. Some of the subs include Billy Day, Joe Sosa, Vasquez Masonry, Steele Montague and Abel Garza. Not only was Fore working with his guys, but he was also working with other contractors on the HVAC side. Rather Western Sky Wedding and Event Center
continued on Page 24