Originally located in Los Gatos, the company moved to Morgan Hill in 2007

By David Dindak

David Dindak

Greetings, fellow MoHillians,

The weather folks say another rainy season is coming. No doubt there will be drainage issues in crawl spaces, basements, garages, and retaining walls, as well as landslides. If there’s something weird and it don’t look good, who ya going to call?  Not Ghostbusters, but MG Constructors and Engineers.

Established in 2001 by Mark Garrison, this is a one-stop shop with in-house architects, structural engineering and contractor services. Garrison grew up farming in the Central Valley and worked his way through college in construction. An engineer in the ‘90s, he was laid off in 2002 during the economic bust. He decided if he was going to be unemployed, it may as well be while doing his own thing.  The stars aligned, and success was in the future.

Originally located in Los Gatos, the company moved to Morgan Hill in 2007 to serve the South Valley. The American team is comprised of 50 W-2 employees and five to six contract back-office personnel, many of which reside in the South Valley area.  MG has even become internationally known after opening an India office in 2016.

Mr. Garrison is a bit of a brainiac as well. He’s earned three undergrad degrees, received a master’s in construction engineering, and is in his fourth study year of a doctorate, all related to his field. So, if anyone knows anything about foundations, raising buildings and sagging roofs, it’s Mark.

He even told me a story about a food production company whose equipment emitted bothersome noise to the surrounding area. MG Constructors was able to create a foundation system to stop the noise vibration.

Mark said the company has no competition as their team provides the drawings, engineering and construction of a project, whereas others are piecemeal. Over the past couple of years and because of the impact of last year’s rain, about 60 percent of the clientele has been residential, particularly on hillsides like Holiday Lake Estates and Jackson Oaks.

The cost of drainage projects runs between $20,000 and $50,000. About 40 percent of the work has been commercial.  Ever hear of NASA, Safeway, and Shoreline Amphitheater to name a few?

When asked why Morgan Hill, Mark said it is an exceptionally well-run city from the mayor to the building and planning departments. He said we have some of the best qualified long-term building officials in the area.  He categorized city of Morgan Hill staff as helpful and true public servants. Here, project permits can be acquired within a month, whereas some cities can be brutal while navigating the process.

God forbid you will ever have to deal with things like a sinking or cracked foundation, water in your crawl space, leaning retaining wall or other structural issues. But if you must, MG Constructors and Engineers, Inc can be reached at (408) 842-5599. And for you real estate, insurance and banking professionals, MG will gladly visit your office for educational seminars.

That’s it for this month, folks.  Hope you found this one interesting and helpful if you have some engineering issues you need solved. Cheers!

David Dindak is the Morgan Hill Downtown Association president and co-owner of Bubbles & Brew and also a REMAX agent.