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Santa Cruz Sentinel Feb 6, 2012 features SCCG member Ron Myers & Surf City Painting on front page for local “Restaurant Impossible” show. LINK

 

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Santa Cruz Construction Guild helps local contractors survive

By JONDI GUMZ -- Santa Cruz Sentinel Posted: 09/16/2010 07:20:14 PM PDT

SANTA CRUZ - Local contractors are banding together to survive the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

Their organization, the Santa Cruz Construction Guild, gives homeowners a way to find reliable local tradespeople for improvement projects.

Mike Hartrich, 58, a general contractor in Scotts Valley, started the guild a year ago, as the market for construction dried up.

The number of building permits in the county plummeted from 578 in 2007 to 257 in 2008, then 109 in 2009, according to the Construction Industry Research Board.

The value of that work plunged as well, from $229 million in 2007 to $166 million in 2008, then $105 million in 2009.

From January to June this year, 57 building permits worth $49 million were issued, up 10 percent from a year ago.

"All our business is word of mouth," said Kevin Gallagher of KG Construction in Santa Cruz. "Everybody's treading water trying to stay afloat."

Santa Cruz Sentinel article LINK