R.C. Stevens Construction Co. celebrates 100 years

If you’ve spent any time on Plant Street in downtown Winter Garden, more than likely, you’ve enjoyed the fruits of R.C. Stevens Construction Company’s labor.

You might have grabbed a coffee at Foxtail or shopped at Apricot Lane Boutique in the Winter Garden Exchange Building. Perhaps you’ve attended an event at the Winter Garden Heritage Foundation. Or maybe you’ve seen a show or movie at the Garden Theatre.

All of these iconic buildings — and many more throughout West Orange and the Southeast — were built or renovated by R.C. Stevens. 

Last week, the Winter Garden-based company celebrated a huge milestone — its 100th anniversary. On Wednesday, April 15, team members, alongside subcontractors, architects, engineers and former employees, gathered at Pilars Martini & Loft to celebrate the company’s anniversary, look back at its past accomplishments and share information about its future. 

JUICY PAST

Raymond C. Stevens founded R.C. Stevens Construction Co. in 1926 as the first general contracting firm in the Orlando phone book. 

R.C. Stevens led the way in designing and constructing packinghouses for citrus icons such as Chester and Jack Fosgate, Dr. P. Phillips and the Gentile Brothers. Furthermore, the company also built family homes. 

“Through those relationships, (R.C. Stevens) got into some health care jobs, as well as commercial work,” R.C. Stevens Vice President Timothy Keating III said. “So we pretty much stayed in the business through relationships and building on those relationships. … It was word-of-mouth and doing a good job.”

Stevens was involved heavily in the Central Florida scene and sat on many boards. 

Throughout the ’60s and ’70s, Stevens’ son, Allyn, led the company in designing and building health care, industrial and commercial projects around Central Florida, which continued into the ’80s and ’90s. 

Keating’s father began working at the company in the ’80s and became vice president in 1993, with Dave Smith as president. 

In 2007, Keating’s father purchased the company and became the sole owner. 

Keating grew up around the company, accompanying his father to work and outings, though, Keating said his father never pushed him to follow in his footsteps. 

“My dad started here right out of college, and I was kind of born into it,” he said. “I’ve been around the company my whole life and went to school for construction, as well. Out of high school, I came to work here as a laborer, and then went to college and came back after I got some outside experience and been here for about eight years now.” 

Keating recalls considering going into the agricultural sector, but after working in construction, he took a liking to it. Realizing he had the potential to be successful in it, he went for it. 

“It just kind of happened,” he said. 

The company has worked on a variety of local projects, including the Winter Garden Exchange Building, the Winter Garden Heritage Foundation, Boyd Street Commercial, Orlando Health Imaging Centers in Ocoee, the Garden Theatre, the Roper Garden Building and many more. 

Keating’s father even helped with renovations of the Bond Building, where R.C. Stevens Construction Co. currently is located. 

“It’s a labor of love, I like to call it, and we get to see it every day,” said Jennifer Simikian, business development manager at R.C. Stevens.

'WE’RE ALL OWNERS NOW’

R.C. Stevens is centered on its culture. 

From the beginning, relationships were the most important aspect of the company. 

That remains the same today.

“We pride ourselves on understanding what people have going on outside of work,” Keating said. “What we say is, people have stuff in their backpack and they’re always bringing it to work. You don’t know if it’s a light load or a really heavy load, so we’re making sure we take care of the people. Our clients are the same way — making sure we understand their needs, satisfying it and getting the next job. We don’t want to make as much money on the one job we get from (them). We want to make our fair share and get the next job with (them).”

In 2022, R.C. Stevens Construction Co. merged with Cianbro, a 100% employee-owned construction and engineering company. 

Keating said he and his father thought that was the best option to keep the culture alive and the company progressing. 

“We’re all owners now,” Keating said. “It’s a key benefit. The main thing is that it makes everybody accountable for how the company’s doing (and) where we’re going.” 

The words, “No one in the room is smarter than all of us,” are written on the company’s conference room’s wall. 

“We’re all owners, and that requires us to all talk to (one another) and make decisions together,” Keating said. 

The company also is offering growth opportunities to its employees through education. 

“It’s nice that as we’ve grown, we have more opportunities for advancement for our team members, more opportunity to invest in our futures through our employee-owned company,” Simikian said. “We’ve always been good, but I think we are at this really great precipice of greatness for our team members. It really is. I can’t imagine it being any better.” 

Keating said his father prioritized taking care of team members, so they can take care of the business. Team members even completed a community power communications class, helping them become more confident in what they do at work and in their personal lives. 

THE FUTURE

“It’s weird to think about the next 100 years, but I see R.C. Stevens still being around,” Keating said. “We’re not going to lose sight of the people aspect of the business. We used to build everything by hand. There (were) no battery-powered tools. There (were) no electrical tools on construction sites, because there was no power and the technology just wasn’t there.” 

While technology such as drones, 3D models, and electric- and battery-powered tools now are available, he said the company will continue to value people over technology.

Simikian sees the company growing. 

“We’re in growth mode,” she said. “It’s exciting. More people, more education, more work, more profits. The team wins.” 

Keating said the company has survived World War II, the Great Depression, the Great Recession and COVID-19, and will survive anything that comes in the future. 

While it is hard to keep a construction company going — only about .5% of all companies in the U.S. make it to 100 years —  R.C. Stevens has beaten the odds. 

And although competition is a challenge, Simikian and Keating are confident the company will continue to thrive with Cianbro. 

“We’re looking to expand and grow, and so we got a lot of work in Tampa right now,” Keating said. “We’re really looking forward to expand to growing Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville. Those are our main targets.” 

Keating said R.C. Stevens hopes to remain local to Florida but isn’t opposed to working in other states occasionally. The company currently has projects in Georgia, and is considering jobs in Alabama and South Carolina. 

Working for the community they live in, though, is the most special to Keating and Simikian. 

“I just can’t imagine being anywhere else,” Simikian said. “The community’s helped us, and we’ve helped the community.”