later, that hundred dollars is a drop in the bucket compared to 25 guys standing around waiting,” Fetterhoff notes. The company’s 38 full-time employees, particularly its 28 masons, form the backbone of operations. Several have worked with Jay Knoepfel for three decades, bringing irreplaceable institutional knowledge.“They care as much as we do about how we’re building and what we’re building,” Fetterhoff says.“We always say if you see something, say something.” Unlike many island contractors operating on relaxed schedules, JPK maintains mainland efficiency. “Our guys are never on island time because there’s always more work for them.” FROM COMMERCIAL SPACES TO KEEPING TALENT HOME Beyond luxury residences, JPK tackles the territory’s broader development challenges, including the exodus of educated locals who find limited career opportunities after college. “People are born here, they’re educated here, then they go to college in the States, and then there’s no jobs for them to return home to,” Fetterhoff observes. JPK’s commercial projects aim to reverse this brain drain. The company recently secured contracts for two three-story medical office buildings near the hospital, addressing the territory’s acute shortage of modern professional space. “We don’t have a lot of office space. We do not have a lot of retail space that is new and has all of the nuances of some of the new construction in the states.” Past projects demonstrate JPK’s range, from building the ICMC headquarters—the territory’s largest employer—to constructing Lovango Resort and contributing to Westin St. John renovations. The company also completed reconstruction of a 6.4-megawatt solar farm following hurricane damage, installing 40,000 panels and 2,000 solar tables across challenging terrain. Currently, JPK is developing a 40,000-square-foot 20 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 12, ISSUE 07
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