Ronald McDonald House Selected for Finance and Commerce Top Projects of 2019
Rochester, MN – 05/05/2020
Ronald McDonald House of Rochester has been selected as one of the 50 Top Projects of 2019 being highlighted by Finance and Commerce. The criteria for the award included the degree of difficulty, creativity in design, innovative construction techniques, cooperation among contractors and management, and sustainability efforts.
The project was completed in two phases to allow the Ronald McDonald House to continue serving its guests during construction. This project had several unique challenges that required careful planning and coordination. The new construction was designed to be a concrete structure which needed to line up to a wood-framed existing building. Additionally, the tightness of the site required coordination with the surrounding neighbors to utilize their driveways to access the site, along with one lane of the busiest two- lane road in the City for the delivery of concrete beams.
Over the last 4 years, the Ronald McDonald House has had to turn away nearly 4,000 families in need of their services due to operating at capacity. This project was time sensitive and more importantly involved the care of families whose children were facing their own health crisis as this facility is used to help those who are in need of help and need a place to stay as they are getting treatment at Mayo. This project was built entirely by donations and gift in kind donations from individuals, companies, and organizations. Knutson was committed in meeting the gift-in-kind goal which involved soliciting donations of material, equipment and supplies for the project from vendors, suppliers, and sub-contractors. The Knutson office staff spent several days volunteering, working on the landscaping in the front and back of the building, saving them that cost they did not have to bear. As they were working on the landscaping, multiple people stopped and asked if they could help too! Even a few kids from Iowa spent the first day digging, planting and laying rock. Watching first-hand the community pull together to make this dream a reality for the Ronald McDonald House has been amazing. The house addition is complete, and we are very proud to say we are very close to meeting our goal! It is a team effort by all our subcontractors, material suppliers, and Knutson in achieving this goal.
“Knutson is thrilled to see that the work on the Ronald McDonald House has been recognized as a Top Project by Finance and Commerce. We are encouraged to know that the new facility has had such a positive impact on the community, allowing the Ronald McDonald House of Rochester to continue offer support to families seeking medical care for their children,” stated Derek O’Connor, Knutson Construction’s senior project manager.
The projects will be featured in a magazine and in a series of stories and photos in the Finance & Commerce daily newspaper and on the F&C website. You can view that now here: https://www.pageturnpro.com/FCI/95879-Top-Projects-of-2019/sdefault.html#page/1. The people and companies behind the projects also will be honored at a July 23 event (with an Oct. 15 alternate date) at the Nicollet Island Pavilion.