Native contractors enjoying success: Alaska Native construction companies help to build Alaska.

• Author: Martin, Gary L.

Alaska's construction industry did well last year and looks forward to another successful year in 2004. That includes Native owned construction companies, an integral part of the Native business community overall that has served to maintain the fiscal well being of the state of Alaska.

In fact, nearly all of the 13 Native regional corporations have some involvement in the construction industry.

Each of the three construction companies highlighted in this article are Native owned and look forward to another good year.

NUNA CONTRACTORS

Nuna has successfully completed more than $100 million in construction-based projects. This includes design, build and renovation work for a variety of clients in federal and state government agencies, Native organizations and private owners.

In 1988, Nuna, which in Yup'ik means land, earth, soil or place, became a fully owned subsidiary of Choggiung Ltd., the Dillingham, Native village corporation. Nuna moved its home office to Anchorage in 1991. Since then the firm has enjoyed a continuous steady growth in a variety of projects in the $5 million to $15 million price range. Over the past three years, the average project has been $10 million.

Although the Nuna team has experience in both the public and private markets, the military has been one of the its best customers. In 2001, Nuna received a $14.5 million contract to build a 57,000-square-foot dormitory for the Air Force at Elmendorf Air Force Base.

There also was a $15.5 million project for the Alaska Army National Guard, when Nuna was selected to construct a 74,000-square-foot, combined support maintenance facility at Fort Richardson near Anchorage.

Outside of the Department of Defense, Nuna built a police station for the city of Juneau. The facility was 33,000-square-foot masonry and steel structure, and cost the city $7.3 million.

Nuna's four-page client list includes the State of Alaska, Alaska Area Native Health Service/Alaska Public Health Service, Alaska Department of Transportation, Alaska Public Health Service, and Alaska State Housing Authority. The list also includes various federal agencies, such as the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Interior and the Department of Agriculture.

Besides the Air Force and Army, in the Defense Department arena, Nuna also has completed projects for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, and the Alaska State National Guard.

"Our contractors' success is a reflection of the caliber of our management...