Concrete Strategies opens Seattle

St. Louis-headquartered Concrete Strategies has opened an office in Marysville, the company announced on Tuesday.

The company did not answer a question about whether the new office for the company, a subsidiary of national design-build firm Clayco, is related to the ongoing strike by 300-plus Teamsters ready-mix truck drivers.

But a spokesman said the company "has been operating in the Pacific Northwest for some time now, and it made sense for us to open a regional office to better serve our clients in the area as business increased."

It's believed the opening of the office will have no impact on the strike because apparently Concrete Strategies does not have anything to with with delivering concrete.

The news release states the office at 14800 40th Ave. NE will "create a variety of jobs throughout King County."

The strike by Local 174 began in November and spread in early December, grinding construction to a halt on public and private projects in King County until the union made "an unconditional return to work" in April. Negotiations were to continue as work resumes.

"We are approaching pre-strike operation levels with most of the companies. We do not have any formal negotiations scheduled," a spokesperson for the concrete companies said Wednesday.

A union representative was not immediately available Wednesday.

The Marysville office will help traveling contractors better serve the Pacific Northwest business community, a region where the company "has seen considerable traction," the company said in a news release.

The company does site cast concrete, structural concrete, flatwork, site utilities and all types of self-performing concrete construction for commercial projects. Marysville is Concrete Strategies' second office in the West after Phoenix.

Concrete Strategies is looking to expand its staff in the Seattle area under the leadership of Johnnie Zabel, vice president of operations in the Northwest region. He assumed the role in August, according to his LinkedIn profile. Previously he worked at LangCo NW Inc. in Oak Harbor, Salina Construction Inc. and Mowat Construction Co.

"In all the best ways, (Concrete Strategies) doesn't feel like a corporation here — it feels like a small business," Zabel said in the release.

The company's website says it has done work in 43 states and has 874 field and office personnel. It says it completed over $500 million in revenue a year.

Concrete Strategies' 2020 St. Louis area revenue was $278 million, putting it at No. 63 on the St. Louis Business Journal's list of the area's top 150 privately held companies.

The Teamsters last month said the main sticking point for the union is the cost of retiree medical benefits. The mixer drivers make $56.03 an hour, which includes wages as well as pension and medical benefits. The union said it asked for $59.16 an hour including benefits in the first year, rising to $64.80 an hour in the third year, plus $1,000 annual bonuses.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional information about Concrete Strategies.

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