Regional jobs put Nesbitt on map

Today, Nesbitt Construction employs about 20 individuals and regularly handles jobs in the $2 million to $3 million range.

Nesbitt, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in industrial technology from Missouri State University in 1966, had worked for other builders and, after watching the ups and downs of the industry, wanted to strike out on his own.

“You get the idea that you can make a difference or do something better,” Nesbitt said.

He said he got his start as a draftsman in college, estimating that he probably drew the first 50 houses in the Coachlight Village subdivision.

He switched to building, opening Nesbitt Construction in 1977, when he saw a need for contractors to build midsize and smaller projects.

Nesbitt saw gaps opening up in the residential and commercial construction businesses in 1977. Nesbitt Construction was his attempt to fill them.

“There was a big gap between large commercial construction and small stuff,” Nesbitt said. “There was a lot of small commercial construction going wanting. That’s what we went after when we started.”

Through the years, certain jobs have become milestones for Nesbitt Construction.

In the early 1980s Nesbitt remodeled the old downtown Sears building into Springfield’s original trade center, a project that raised the firm’s visibility and opened new doors.

Brown Derby’s International Wine Center on Glenstone Avenue also helped raise Nesbitt Construction’s profile.

“They took the old bowling alley up on Glenstone and made the Wine Center out of it,” said architect Jim Butler, who worked with Nesbitt on the wine center. “It took a contractor who could work with the client and be creative about salvaging the flooring and use the assets of the existing building. Bill’s always been real good at that type of stuff.”

The highest praise for Nesbitt from Butler was more work; when Butler wanted a cabin on the lake for himself, he called Nesbitt to build it.

“I knew they would get it done,” Butler said. “I knew it would get the level of attention it deserved and the right level of care and cost control.”

Another breakthrough came through Butler for Panera Bread, which extended both the scope and reach of Nesbitt Construction’s work.

Panera franchisees took them as far away as Oklahoma City. According to regional franchisee Jim Magers, Nesbitt won the bidding process and proved itself in job after job.

“He’s an easy guy to work with and very honest,” Magers said of Nesbitt. “He’s willing to work with you and get things done in a cost-effective manner. We felt like he was someone we could work with and kept the process up.”

Nesbitt said he might not have sought the out-of-town work on his own.

“You aren’t looking for out-of-town work, but when you get in with a corporation like that, you will go out of town to do their bidding,” Nesbitt said. “They know you and what you can do.”

Nesbitt’s son, Michael, who holds a bachelor’s degree in finance and business management from Westminster College in Fulton, worked in the business off and on when he was younger. For the past five years, he’s worked full-time, moving from general laborer into a project manager role.

“His first summer to work construction, he was riding a bicycle over to the site because it wasn’t far from our home and he wasn’t old enough to drive,” Nesbitt said.

These days, Nesbitt Construction is involved in large jobs, including work in the public schools sector. Nesbitt still sees the most opportunity in smaller building jobs.

“Once the big shopping center is done or once all the big stuff is done downtown, they are still going to need to put stores in once they build the shell,” Nesbitt said.

Finding enough work to keep crews busy year-round, however, is an ongoing challenge for the company.

“You can find good people, but it is hard to find enough good work to keep them busy year-round. You take some jobs you might not want to do to find enough work to keep everybody going,” Nesbitt said.

He noted that one of the aspects he enjoys most about his work is the long-running relationships he’s built with clients, and the satisfaction that comes from seeing some of his former employees go on to find success of their own.

“You’ll see them and maybe you can’t remember their name but you’ll get that big smile and know that at one time, you fought a good battle together,” he said. [[In-content Ad]]