A Salute to a Linder Customer: Lee Mar Construction Corp.

Margie Smith moved from Tennessee to Fort Myers, Fla., and pioneered the way for women in the construction industry when she started a fill dirt business in the mid-1960s. Then in 1971, Ronnie and Edwina Felts purchased the company, naming it Lee Mar Construction Corp. In the decades that followed, the business played an integral role in reshaping the area through a wide array of construction projects. Today, Ronnie and Edwina’s son, Butch, is Vice President and runs the firm alongside his son, Luke, who serves as a Project Manager.

“I was born and raised in Lee Mar,” shared Butch. “I started out shoveling dirt, driving stakes and running equipment before eventually moving into some management positions.”

“My story is similar,” added Luke. “In high school, I would call out sick to ride along with my dad to jobsites, then worked there part time during the summers. After that, I went to Florida Gulf Coast University and earned a degree in business management before returning to the company in a role where I do a little bit of everything.”

The father-son duo has established Lee Mar as a premier general contractor specializing in mass-grading and excavation projects throughout Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties. To supplement business, Lee Mar also excavates and sells fill dirt from a quarry owned by Vulcan Materials. Within its construction business, the company typically has five to 15 projects of varying sizes active at any time. Approximately 70 percent of its jobs are private or residential, and the remainder are public projects.

“We’re a complete site-preparation company,” described Butch. “We clear land, dig dirt, build roads and get the site ready for homebuilders. Generally, we will sub out some parts of the contract, such as paving and underground utilities.”

With more than 50 employees between the office and field staff, Butch recognizes that people like Superintendent Garret Rogers, Project Manager Richard McKee and Operations Manager Jimmy Thompson all play vital roles in Lee Mar’s success.

“We treat our employees and clients like family,” stated Butch. “We have very little turnover; most of our employees have been here 10, 15 or 20 years. All of our management is brought up from within, so they understand the culture we’re trying to build.”

Niche projects

Like many companies that have stood the test of time, Lee Mar has adapted to the economic environment.

“In the ‘80s and ‘90s we were a golf course contractor,” explained Butch. “We had a lot of big iron because that was a huge thing in southwestern Florida. Later, we dove into state projects and worked for some of the larger road contractors in the country.”

The demand for new housing is now spurring a majority of Lee Mar Construction’s current projects. Near the Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers, the company is helping transform tracts of land into single and multi-family housing developments.

“A lot of larger organizations have offices in this area and are hiring younger people who are looking to buy new houses,” offered Butch. “One of our current projects is called Timber Creek. It’s a 600-acre residential tract where we recently broke ground.”

The $20-million undertaking will remove 1.5-million cubic yards of material to make way for 1,230 homes and 13 water-retention ponds. The project is divided into two phases, and the firm expects to be on site for more than a year. Crews have encountered some early challenges due to the high water table in the area.

“There’s a lot of rock and water, two things that are different about this part of Florida,” explained Butch. “Anywhere we work, we’ll generally dig through rock. Some of our projects require us to excavate 13 feet below sea level, and we have to dig them wet without dewatering. It’s a niche that we’ve learned how to handle.”

The company also strives to minimize its ecological impact.

“That’s a big part of our business, making sure as we’re working on 600 acres that we don’t disturb the two acres next to us,” said Butch. “We’re very careful to protect the adjacent land.”

Technology and support

Technology plays an important role in Lee Mar’s success, which is why it works closely with Linder Industrial Machinery and Sales Rep Ray Henry to incorporate Komatsu’s intelligent Machine Control dozers into its fleet. The firm began using an aftermarket GPS system in the early 2000s and has witnessed the impact it has on a jobsite.

“We were one of the first in the area, maybe in the country, with this type of technology and have gone through the evolution of it,” noted Butch. “That’s what brought us to Komatsu, because it’s on top of the GPS food chain right now.”

Lee Mar recently added two Komatsu D61PXi-24 dozers and a D39PXi-24 dozer to its fleet and noticed immediate results.

“The machine control quality, accuracy and ease drew us to Komatsu,” explained Butch. “Our operators grade just once, plus they know where they’re at without putting stakes in the ground. The complete project is on the screen in front of them, whether it’s laying out a lake, building a pad or creating a detention pond. It gives operators total control.”

“One of my favorite things about Komatsu, aside from being well-balanced and strong machines, is the visibility from the cab,” added Luke. “The ability to see 360-degrees is a big benefit to our guys when people are working all around them. The visibility is fantastic compared to some competitors.”

Lee Mar uses a D61PXi-24 to move large quantities of material and a D39PXi-24 to perform smaller berm, sidewalk and other tasks in tighter spaces. “Both machines are easy to use,” noted Luke.

Continuing to help implement technology on the jobsite remains a vital part of Linder‘s commitment to Lee Mar.

“They’re great about making sure we get the latest technology out here to try,” shared Butch. “We have a great relationship with them.”

Protecting the Everglades

Limiting the downstream impact from land development remains a challenge for the construction industry in Florida. Luke envisions the company playing a role to mitigate future issues.

“Our state is moving toward policies that direct clean water through the Everglades and restore the natural flow as much as possible,” said Luke. “There’s a lot of earthwork involved in that process, some of which includes building massive retention areas. There are a couple of big projects in the works currently that fit right in with what we do, so I can see that being a part of our business in the future.”