The Associated General Contractors of Missouri (AGCMO) recognized exceptional achievements in the construction industry during its 2024 Keystone Construction Awards Gala, held on November 7 at the River City Casino Hotel. The event celebrated contractors for excellence across 12 specialty disciplines, with notable accolades, including the designation of Specialty Contractor of the Year.

Stephen Leamon, superintendent at Pace Construction Company, was honored with the Show Me Excellence in Craftsmanship Award for his outstanding work in asphalt paving. Leamon was commended for his leadership in scheduling, budgeting, and reducing downtime and for his dedication to crew training.

The gala also featured the presentation of 11 First Place Keystone Awards, honoring contractors for significant contributions to various projects, including manufacturing, research, hospitality, sports, and historic renovations. Among the winners, Ben Hur Construction was recognized for its work on Procter & Gamble’s manufacturing facility, while KAI, alongside McCarthy Building Companies, earned an award for the Jeffrey T. Fort Neuroscience Research Building Link Bridge at Washington University. Other top recipients included PARIC Corporation for the Kings Hill Redevelopment, Millstone Weber, LLC for the I-270 North Design-Build project, and Russell for the 21c Museum Hotel St. Louis renovation.

The Brightline Florida Higher-Speed Rail project received a National Class Keystone Award for its impressive work outside Missouri. The collaboration between Herzog Contracting Corp., StacyWitbeck Inc., and RailWorks Corp. is the largest U.S. passenger rail project in over a century, spanning 165 miles and allowing train speeds of up to 125 mph.

The Keystone Awards assess projects based on how contractors overcome challenges and meet high standards in safety, budget management, and schedule adherence rather than focusing solely on aesthetics or scale. A panel of judges, including experts from architecture and engineering firms as well as academic institutions, evaluated the nominees.

Additionally, AGCMO recognized 12 Specialty Contractors of the Year (SCOTY) for their exceptional performance in timeliness, budget compliance, and overall contribution. Boyer Fire Protection, with the most votes, was named Specialty Contractor of the Year, with other honorees including ROSCH Company, Elastizell of St. Louis, and Guarantee Electrical Company.

SEE A LIST OF ALL THE KEYSTONE AWARD WINNERS HERE.

Header image: A photo of the award-winning Jeffrey T. Fort Neuroscience Research Building Link Bridge at Washington University School of Medicine. Image courtesy of KAI Build

Bayer YMCA has completed $2.5 million in renovations to update and expand services at its facility, located on 5555 Page Blvd. in North St. Louis.

The improvements are a part of the Gateway Region YMCA’s strategic plan and capital development initiative supported by a $1.5 million gift from Bayer and a separate $1 million anonymous donor gift.

KAI Design provided architectural design, project management and MEP/FP engineering on the project and worked in concert with the organization’s program manager and architectural consultant, GRO Development, to meet the YMCA’s design expectations for the renovation. PARIC served as the general contractor on the project.

“The renovations to the 19,000-SF space did not include any expansion of the building's actual footprint, but instead KAI took the existing underutilized space to create higher-performing spaces to better meet the needs of the community, such as enlarging lobby spaces, creating new fitness areas, updating finishes, increasing the number of group exercise rooms, adding a family changing room and improving accessibility,” said KAI Senior Project Manager Joel Kerschen, AIA, CSI.

“We have updated the existing space for a more modern look and use. The facility was built almost forty years ago, with its last major update twenty years ago. The new design puts an emphasis on positive spaces for teen and child activities and community interaction,” Kerschen said.

The Bayer YMCA renovations included:

Expanded Early Childhood Education Center (ECEC). The ECEC will provide a safe and nurturing environment for children 6 weeks through 5 years old in a state licensed facility.
Expanded health and wellness services. An expanded fitness area and new fitness programs will allow more individuals to take part in the Y's Blood Pressure Self-Monitoring, Diabetes Prevention and other chronic disease prevention programs to meet growing community needs.
New Bayer Teen Tech Center. A state-of-the-art technology center will offer a variety of STEAM activities, including robotics, coding classes and gaming, STEM camps and family STEM nights. This space and the new mezzanine above it will also allow for increased enrollment in the Learning Labs program, which allows students who are underperforming in reading or math to improve.
New teen area with a mezzanine for esports.
New STEM Focused Community Kitchen. A modernized STEM Focused Community Kitchen and expanded community garden will provide more education and food outreach in a community recognized as a "food desert" and in need of healthy eating resources.
New family changing room. These facilities will provide a safe environment for families with young children.

“We are extremely proud of our newly renovated space for many reasons. Additional programming allows us to continue to serve the North St. Louis community and the many challenges that we face,” said Bayer YMCA executive director Marcus Wilson.

A grand re-opening was held on Nov. 10, 2020 to celebrate and showcase the improvements.

AGCMO honors excellence in construction at the 2024 Keystone Awards Gala

Bayer YMCA completes $2.5 million in renovations