Walton finds new buyer; Springfield office remains open

The company’s name following the purchase is Walton Construction-A Core Co. LLC. Its Springfield office will remain open, said Greg Beuerman, company spokesman.

David Atkisson, vice president of operations and head of the Springfield office at 2932 E. Pythian St., referred questions to Bill Cox, Core executive vice president, who was unavailable at deadline.

Dennis Thompson, Kansas City chief operations officer, and Ric Foster, the company’s vice president, will be retained under projects started under their leadership are completed, Beuerman said, but he didn’t know what role Atkisson would play in the company’s future.

Walton closed offices in St. Louis and Dallas in February, and in July the company had signed a preliminary letter of intent to sell the majority of its assets to Miami-based Munilla Construction Management LLC.

The two parties were unable to reach terms of the sale, and Walton sought other potential buyers, Beuerman said.

In May, Walton’s Springfield office was reduced to 12 employees, down from roughly 50 in November 2008. Earlier this year, officials said the company would begin focusing on more government construction jobs and expand outside the Springfield market.

Beuerman said the acquisition by Core brings a strong foothold in the military construction field.

Recent Walton projects include the recently completed 78,000-square-foot, $52.5 million CoxHealth emergency department, and in 2009, a 317,500 Northstar Battery West project at 1320 N. Alliance Ave.