Giving Back
1. The Opus Foundation is investing $500K in the Pfister Housing Impact Fund to help expand access to affordable and workforce housing in Arizona. The program-related investment will provide catalytic capital to help advance housing developments for working families.
2. Achen-Gardner Construction sponsored and attended the 2026 Live Trench Safety & Damage Prevention Stand Down & Expo on Oct. 15 at Wild Horse Pass in Chandler. The event was hosted by the Arizona Chapter of the National Utility Contractors Association in collaboration with the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health.
3. Achen-Gardner Construction’s employee-owners attended the 2026 Northern Arizona University Engineering & Technology Career Fair and the University of Arizona Civil, Construction & Architectural Engineering Fall Career Night. Employee-owners shared insights into the civil construction industry.
Awards & Accolades
4. WESTMARC announced the honorees at the 2026 Best of the West Awards Dinner. The honorees are:
- West Valley Youth Leadership Scholarship – Elena Casillas, a student attending Arizona State University;
- West Valley Emerging Leaders Impact Award – Vanesa Contreras Rodriguez at New Pathways for Youth;
- West Valley Inspiration in Leadership Award – Paul Lambertson at Grand Canyon University;
- West Valley Regional Advancement Award – George Getz at Globe Corporation;
- West Valley Economic Engine Award – Peoria Innovation Core;
- West Valley Excellence in Innovation Award – City of Hope Cancer Center Arizona;
- West Valley Quality of Life Enhancement Award – Valleywise Comprehensive Health Center – Peoria;
- West Valley Excellence in Education & Workforce Development Award – West-MEC Advanced Manufacturing Cleanroom, and
- President’s Choice Award – Bridget Schwartz-Manock of Central Arizona Project.
5. Government Business Review named Peoria Economic Development Director Maria Laughner Economic Development Director of the Year. Laughner is helping to make Peoria an employment hub while maintaining a high quality of life.
6. The Safford branch of Airgas was recently named the National Branch of the Year. Airgas has 800 different branch teams, and the Safford branch was one of just four to receive the honor.
Boards & Commissions
7. The Prescott Valley Town Council reappointed Bruce Evans and Joseph Huot to the Planning & Zoning Commission, while also naming Kimberli Lopez to a partial term. Evans and Huot will serve until Oct. 31, 2029, while Lopez will serve until Oct. 31, 2027.
8. Craig Krumwiede, Executive Chairman of Harvard Investments, was appointed to the 15-member Board of Directors of the ULI Foundation. Krumwiede recently transitioned from CEO to Executive Chairman and continues to lead the company’s investment and development activities while helping set its strategic direction. He has more than 40 years of experience with Harvard Investments and serves as a ULI Governor, mentors ULI Young Leaders and sits on the executive committee of the ULI Arizona District Council.
Company News
9. PCL Construction Inc. marked 40 years of operations in Arizona, celebrating with employees, clients, consultants and industry partners in Phoenix. The company has grown its Civil operation from a small local team into a workforce of more than 900 employees. Ankur Talwar, District Manager, Civil Infrastructure, West Region, credited the growth to relationships with employees, clients and partners.
10. Gulfeagle Supply is implementing Elite EXTRA, a last-mile logistics and delivery management platform, to improve delivery operations across its branch network. The technology will provide route optimization, dispatching, driver tracking, proof of delivery, customer notifications and reporting. The phased rollout is designed to improve efficiency, delivery visibility and customer communication. Brad Resch, President of Gulfeagle Supply, said the investment will give teams better delivery management tools while providing customers with greater visibility and communication.
Promotions
11. The Pima County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved appointing Carmine DeBonis Jr. as County Administrator. DeBonis has worked for the County for more than 30 years.
12. PCL Construction announced the promotion of Shawn Breinlinger to Construction Manager of the company’s Arizona district. Breinlinger recently transferred from the Colorado office and has 11 years of experience with the company.
13. LevRose Commercial Real Estate recently announced two new hires. Jake Fox has joined as an Advisor, a position in which he will specialize in office properties throughout Metro Phoenix, with a primary focus on the East Valley. Caitlin Salem has been hired as Marketing Coordinator, where she will support the firm’s marketing initiatives, property promotion efforts and brokerage team across a portfolio of commercial real estate assets throughout the Valley.
New Hires
14. Cushman & Wakefield has hired multiple new team members in Arizona. Mark Bauer joined as Executive Vice Chairman, with nearly 30 years of data center real estate and digital infrastructure experience from CBRE and JLL. The other members are:
- Clark Bauer as Managing Director,
- Valerie Galindo as Senior Associate and
- Bridgette Kiefer as Brokerage Specialist.
15. Amit Sahdev joined Meade Engineering as COO. Sahdev previously held leadership roles at Shermco Industries and LJA Engineering.
16. David Heiman joined Haydon as Chief Revenue Officer. He brings more than 20 years of sales and executive leadership experience across construction and infrastructure. He will lead the company’s Strategic Growth, Revenue Operations and Marketing functions, focusing on strengthening client partnerships, pursuit strategies and team capabilities to support Haydon’s growth across the Southwest.
17. Nicholas (Nick) Schubert joined W.E. O’Neil Construction as General Counsel, a newly created position. He will lead the company’s legal and risk functions, overseeing contracts, claims and disputes, insurance, compliance and enterprise risk management. Schubert brings more than 25 years of construction industry experience and will serve on the Executive Leadership Team, reporting to CEO John Finn.
18. Nathaniel Archambeau joined Fairco as Executive VP, Landscape Management. He will lead the company’s water program and serve as its senior arbor authority, focusing on expanding water and irrigation capabilities as Southwest communities face rising water costs. Archambeau brings more than 20 years of green industry experience, including helping to grow a landscape company from $2M to $36M.
19. Buna George joined Cushman & Wakefield | PICOR as an Industrial Specialist based in Yuma. She brings more than 10 years of real estate experience, including residential, commercial, industrial and land transactions, as well as a background in economic development, industrial land development and cross-border trade. George has served as Executive Director of the Greater Yuma Port Authority since 2018.