BEST GENERAL CONTRACTOR

The Weitz Co.

Around 80 percent of The Weitz Co.’s current work is with clients it has worked with before, said Mike Tousley, president of Weitz Iowa, which may explain why the company has been named the best general contractor for a decade.

“It’s a testament to our people,” said Tousley. “It starts with us getting good people on board who believe in the same things we do from a core values perspective and working hard to retain their great talent.”

Taking on small projects of $1,000 up to massive $200 million contracts, Weitz Iowa, one of 14 business units within The Weitz Co., has been building in Iowa communities for more than 150 years. The new Wells Fargo Home Mortgage campus in West Des Moines is near completion, but the company is digging into big projects with Grinnell College, Mesquaki Bingo Casino’s second phase of expansion and the Polk County Jail.

“There seems to be a fair amount of activity out there,” Tousley said, “and I think it will continue to be a fairly busy construction market at least in the foreseeable future.

Last year Weitz had more than $1 billion in revenues and ranked 18th for construction companies in the domestic market and 36th for construction companies in the domestic and international markets, up from 41st in 2004. Weitz Iowa brought in $200 million in 2005.

Runners-up: Graham Construction Co.; Waldinger Corp.

BEST COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE COMPANY

CB Richard Ellis/Hubbell Commercial

A perennial winner in this category, Hubbell Commercial continues to capitalize on its affiliation with CB Richard Ellis Group Inc., an international corporation with 300 offices in 50 countries.

That arrangement “allows us to see things that are happening in other communities,” said Hubbell Realty Co. President and Chief Executive Officer Rick Tollakson. “We’re able to take a lot of what we see there and apply it to Des Moines. I’m in a lot of organizations and spend a lot of time looking at other projects.”

The real estate market appears to be cooling in some parts of the United States, but Tollakson expressed confidence in Central Iowa’s prospects. “Things are pretty strong in Des Moines, although not as strong as they were,” he said. “We definitely do not have an outside investor element in our marketplace, which was a huge driver on the coasts, and job growth here is very, very strong.”

Runners-up: Ferguson Commercial Real Estate Services; Grubb & Ellis/Mid-America Pacific.

BEST REAL ESTATE MANAGEMENT COMPANY

Ferguson Property Management

Darin Ferguson started Ferguson Commercial Real Estate Services in 1999, and spun off Ferguson Property Management two years later. “We had talked about getting into property management in 2000,” Ferguson said. “Then in 2001, we were selling a couple of industrial complexes, and the buyers wanted us to manage the property.”

Now the company manages about 1.6 million square feet of space in Central Iowa. Industrial facilities in the northwest and northeast parts of Greater Des Moines make up the bulk of that space, but Ferguson also manages retail space throughout the area and office space in the western suburbs.

Ferguson, Mark Abbott and Val Caldwell handle the property management duties. “We’ve got some decision-making to do in the next six months to see if we’re going to hire somebody to go out and solicit management business,” Ferguson said. “We haven’t really solicited new business so far; we’ve acquired it through transactions or if people call us.”

Runners-Up: Terrus Real Estate Group LLC; R&R Realty Group.

BEST ARCHITECTURAL FIRM

RDG Planning & Design

RDG Planning & Design must be doing things right when it designs sports practice facilities; Louisana State University and the University of Florida, two of the schools in the Final Four of last spring’s NCAA national basketball tournament, are RDG clients.

“We do lots of collegiate sports and recreation projects,” said Davis Sanders, the company president. “That group continues to grow a lot, and the health-care market has really taken off.”

RDG has expanded its downtown operations into a building adjacent to its headquarters at 301 Grand Ave., and has added offices in La Crosse, Wis., and Omaha to the ones it already operated in Iowa City and Kansas City, Mo. In total, the company employs about 180 people.

“We probably need to look at expanding relatively soon,” Sanders said. “We hope to do some of that in our other offices.”

Here in Des Moines, Sanders said, the company hopes to add a gallery of its designs within the next year. RDG also is focusing on the Davis Brown Tower, which will replace the parking ramp at 10th and Walnut streets.

Runners-Up: SVPA Architects Inc.; Shiffler Associates Architects PLC.

BEST DEVELOPER

Hubbell Realty Co.

Hubbell Realty Co. marked its 150th anniversary this year by hosting the appropriate festivities, and also by pushing forward with a number of major building projects. For example, the company is working on the Brownstones on Grand, the renovation of the Spaghetti Works building on Court Avenue and the construction of two buildings at Fourth Street and Court Avenue, and it recently announced a large-scale project in the Drake University neighborhood.

The company also is building “conservation community” homes at Glynn Village in Waukee and Danamere Farms in Carlisle.

“We have a lot of projects under way; it’s going to be a strong year,” said Rick Tollakson, the company’s president and chief executive officer.

“We have a lot of diversification in the types of projects we go after,” he said. “We have a major focus in downtown housing and also a major focus in conservation development. It’s a very entrepreneurial business, and we’re always looking for opportunities.”

Runners-Up: The Oaks Development Co.; Regency Commercial Services.

BEST RESIDENTIAL REALTY COMPANY

Iowa Realty

Central Iowa’s biggest residential real estate company upgraded its high-end sales efforts last winter, and the move seems to be paying off. Iowa Realty became an affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates and through the first seven months of the year sold 114 homes and condos as part of that program. Its Christie’s homes are listed at $500,000 and above, and the condos are listed at $400,000-plus.

“I do think the Christie’s affiliation has been a positive one,” said Iowa Realty President Mike Knapp. “The name has a cachet and has helped us and our agents refocus on high-end marketing.”

Overall, Knapp said the company is on course for another strong year in residential sales. “The residential resale market for us is almost a repeat of last year,” he said, when sales set a company record. However, he added, “Interest rates are up, and there’s a little more inventory, more competition for the buyer’s eye.”

Runners-up: Coldwell Banker Mid-America Group Realtors; RE/MAX.

BEST ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR

Baker Electric Inc.

A few years ago, Baker Electric Inc. increased the size of its staff and purchased additional equipment in anticipation of two of the largest construction projects the company has ever participated in: the Iowa Events Center and the Wells Fargo Home Mortgage campus in West Des Moines. David Hearn, Baker Electric’s president, is proud that his company has been able to keep employment levels steady following the heavy workload those two jobs created.

Baker Electric has been hired for several new projects lately, including the new Polk County Jail, the Allied Insurance expansion downtown, the Interstate 235 reconstruction, a U.S. Department of Agriculture complex in Ames and several downtown housing projects. Hearn said it takes more than luck to be selected for nearly every major project around; it takes good people and good service.

“It’s been a good run for us these past few years,” Hearn said. “But it didn’t’ come by accident. We’ve had to work very hard to maintain where we’re at. The best way to succeed in the market is to keep customers satisfied, and we’ve done that.”

Runners-up: ABC Electric; Webster Electric Inc.

BEST ENGINEERING FIRM

Shive-Hattery Inc.

Shive-Hattery Inc. took a step forward this summer by acquiring Arcline Associates Ltd. of Downers Grove, Ill. Adding the 20-person company can be expected to strengthen the Iowa-based company’s efforts in the commercial retail field.

Shive-Hattery was founded in Cedar Rapids in 1895 and now has offices in seven Midwestern locations including West Des Moines. In all, the company employs some 260 people, with 50 of those employees here. The company focuses on civil, mechanical, electrical, structural and building envelope engineering.

Revenues for 2005 were $25.8 million, a figure that placed Shive-Hattery among the top 500 U.S. design firms, according to Engineering News-Record. Corporate communications coordinator Greg Kanz said the West Des Moines office has a 10 percent growth target and the company as a whole remains interested in growth through acquisition.

Current projects include a couple of large mixed-use developments; the one in Ames will cover 300 acres, and the one in Springfield, Ill., has a projected value between $200 million and $300 million.

Runners-up: Bishop Engineering Co. Inc.; KJWW Engineering Consultants.