Historical timeline

"Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood" - Daniel Burnham

1906

A gathering of builders calls for a new organization in Chicago. Sixty men sign a petition calling for the protection of the interests of builders in the City of Chicago.

Organization adopts the name The Masons and Contractors Association

1907

The Association approves the practice of paying tradespeople by check to prevent contractor's agents from being robbed of cash en route to paying their tradespeople.

This method of payment becomes standard throughout the industry.

1909

The Association holds its first annual banquet, charging $1 per plate.

Daniel Burnham's "Plan of Chicago".

1911

"Because we have responsibilities far beyond those we had as mason contractors, the association needs a new and separate identity. We have one thing in common; we all are builders. I suggest we change our name to The Builders Association of Chicago." - Andrew Landquist, President

1918

The Builders Association plays an instrumental role in the formation of the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), an organization built to further the construction industry at the national level.

1923

The Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, Japan stands almost unharmed after a major earthquake. It was built using the principles of Chicago's floating foundation and steel skeleton.

1924

A first of its kind construction safety campaign on Harrison and Wabash by Association member Henry Ericsson Company draws editors and photographers from magazines nationwide.

1927

Sumner Sollitt, AGC President, and the Builders Association pay $300 for a silver cup to be awarded to the winner of AGC's annual safety contest.

1929

The Stock Market crashes and building activity slackens in Chicago but doesn't stop as contractors prepare for the 1933 World's Fair.

1930

"The Great Depression" stuns the Chicago construction industry, beginning a 20-year span in which only one major building, The Field Building, is built.

The Association makes sure that work is split among as many tradespeople as possible.

1950

The Association comes to an agreement with the Carpenters and Laborers unions to form the first jointly administered pension trust funds in Chicago.

From this initial effort came many of the benefits that tradespeople enjoy today, including pensions, health insurance, and contributions for apprentice training.

1956

The Association's Hoist Committee develops a safer method of hoisting tradespeople that is approved by Building Commissioner George Ramsey.

1963

The Association produces and distributes the booklet Procedures of Administering the Single Bid, Single Contract System, one year after members rejected a plan for separate bids entitled The Chicago Plan for Construction Bidding.

1971

The Association initiates a one-year study that leads to the formation of the Mid-America Regional Bargaining Association (MARBA) to help reduce labor problems and a lack of stability in the market.

1971

In response to a call for greater involvement of minorities in the construction field, the Association's Minority Relations Committee forms a strategy for change, calling for each trade group to set up a minority entrance program.

1988

The Builders Association, along with other MARBA associations, forms the Construction Industry Service Corporation (CISCO) to encourage contractors, labor and construction users to talk and work together.

1989

The Association is instrumental in the formation of the Chicagoland Construction Safety Council.

1995

The Association plays a key role in the repeal of the Illinois Structural Work Act, which had cost the industry close to $300 million according to a 1998 study by the Watson-Wyatt Group.

2003

The Association forms a partnership with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This partnership helps companies improve safety procedures and turn the sometimes adversarial relationship with OSHA into a constructive partnership.

2005

The Association, City Colleges of Chicago and three community programs launch the Construction Career Opportunity Program, designed to increase the number of minorities in Chicago's construction workforce.

As of late 2006, twenty-nine students have been sponsored by participating contractors into union apprenticeship programs. Seventeen of these students are still working.