American Builders Quarterly Brunelleschi Construction When one thinks of Italy, fine foods, golden Mediterranean sunlight, endless history, and distinctive music immediately come to mind. But perhaps the most evocative images associated with that boot-shaped country are evident in the designs of its breathtaking ancient ruins and its other beautiful works of art that the Italians simply call buildings. Brunelleschi Construction (BrunCon), along with its partners Alfonso and Anthony Carrino, is preserving history and keeping architectural traditions alive by constructing with their eyes on the past and reaching with its hands toward the future. Alfonso (who also happens to be Anthony’s father) and his entire family had dabbled in construction. But it wasn’t until Anthony graduated from college that the two seriously entertained the idea of going into business for themselves. “We just decided one day that our hearts were really in the building trades, so we started the business.” That was I February 2002 and BrunCon has come very far in a very short time. Concentrating in residential real estate and condominiums, the company’s entire current portfolio has been in the restoration of old buildings. Alfonso eloquently elaborates, “The mainstay of our business is transforming underutilized buildings into dynamic residential properties through the historic preservation of architectural heritage,” Alfonso says “We’re hoping that by creating differentiated, high quality, and exciting housing within the urban core that we can capture a share of the hearts and minds that appreciate the finer things in life.” One project of which the partners are particularly proud is called the m650 Flats, a sustainably designed building in Jersey City, New Jersey, that incorporates an environmentalist’s wish-list of green practices and products. In addition, BrunCon was able to beneficially incorporate its expertise in historic preservation on the this project. “Not only is it environmentally conscious, but there are many aesthetic draws to the project as well,” notes Anthony. For example, about 10,000 old bricks and many bluestone pieces had to be carefully taken down and preserved for later reintegration.” The m650 Flats project recently won the 2009 Adaptive Reuse Preservation Prize from the Jersey City Landmarks Conservancy. Alfonso’s connection to Italy helps to further define BrunCon’s philosophy as well as the company’s name. “Our family has always had one foot in Italy and one in the US,” he says “We have a residence in Florence and we’ve always been inspired by Filippo Brunelleschi, who was architect of the Duomo there—hence our company’s name.” He goes on the describe Italy as a country full of dichotomies of the old and the modern. BrunCon takes its design approach from this, because in Italy, you cannot tear down any of the Renaissance buildings or change the facades. “The buildings themselves have to remain as they are, but the insides of those buildings are as modern as you can imagine,” Alfonso says “That kind of influence for over 40 years of my life has transcended me and gone down to Anthony—it’s where our inspiration comes from.” A one-stop construction shop, BrunCon is a developer, general contractor, and project manager. This is a competitive advantage because it allows the company to have full control of projects and pay close attention to minute details. Anthony elaborates, “You have your hands in each and every aspect of a project. When you have the amount of control over a project that we do, you’re on top of everything everyday and you don’t lose any of those details. When a problem does arise, we can handle it instantly.” Perhaps the best thing about BrunCon is that the entire team works together diligently as father, son, cousin, and friend—and they have a great time. Anthony adds, “Whether it’s me, my father, my cousin and project manager, John Colaneri, or our full-time job super, Daniel Cleary—there’s always one of us there working.” Alfonso agrees that it’s this partnership that makes work so enjoyable. “We like what we do and we want to do the very best that we can at building it—we just want to continue doing more buildings and have fun doing it!” ABQ |