ASAC reconstitutes Charlotte chapter,
creating competition for NC subcontractor
association representation
North Carolina Construction News staff writer
The American Subcontractors Association of the
Carolinas (ASAC) is reconstituting its Charlotte chapter,
creating a circumstance where two associations will
now vie to represent the community’s subcontractors.
The other organization, the North Carolina Subcon-
tractors Alliance (NCSA), was formed in 2013 by former
ASAC’s Charlotte-area board members who decided
then that both the ASAC and the association’s Char-
lotte chapter “were in a death spiral of high costs and
declining membership,” according to the NCSA’s web-
site. “The board unanimously voted to call a special
meeting of membership to vote on withdrawing and re-
naming the organization North Carolina Subcontractors
Alliance. At the special meeting, with 16 of 18 mem-
bers present, and hearing both sides of the argument,
the vote to withdraw was 15-1.”
However, new ASAC Charlotte chapter president
Mark Muller of Wayne Brothers Inc. writes in a recent
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10 — March-April 2018 — The North Carolina Construction News
note that “at the end of last year a group of members
put together a steering committee to discuss and plan
the future of the ASAC Charlotte chapter.”
“We met numerous times over the past months and
I am pleased to inform you that we are moving forward
with a plan to revitalize the ASAC Charlotte chapter and
bring it back to a prominent position in the construc-
tion industry in the Charlotte area.”
The new chapter’s first activity will be a social at the
Sugar Creek Brewery Company on April 5. “This event
will be the first of several socials, but we have some
exciting educational programs on the agenda as well,”
Muller wrote.
Notably, as this issue of North Carolina Construction
News goes to press, the NCSA was in the final stages
of preparing for a social event at the same brewery, the
annual “Sub Paddy’s Day Event” which the NCSA says
“provides a great opportunity to network and social-
ize,” open to subs, suppliers, general contractors and
invited associations.
The NCSA is affiliated with the National Subcontrac-
tors Alliance, while the ASAC is associated with the
American Subcontractors Association (ASA).
“Unlike the ASA which has a high overhead large
central office in Washington DC, the NSA has only two
paid employees located in a mem-
ber company’s office in Akron,
OH,” the NCSA’s website says.
“The NSA is a federation of local
subcontractor’s associations, all of
which are former ASA chapters.
The local organizations are mem-
bers of NSA, so the dues paid to
NCSA stay at the local chapter to
meet the needs of subcontractors
at the state and local level.”
Meanwhile, the revitalized ASAC
Charlotte chapter has “a leadership
team of dedicated and talented in-
dividuals who have a good knowl-
edge of ASAC and the construction
industry – individuals who have the
desire and passion to move our
Charlotte chapter back to the fore-
front in North Carolina,” ASAC’s
Muller says.
The breakaway of the NCSA
from the ASAC a few years ago
turned into an acromonius experi-
ence, according to interviews with
individuals from both organizations.
The main issue of contention was
the association’s treasury.
In one version, the NCSA
grabbed the ASAC’s chapter funds
(in the low five figures) unethically
and without authority. The ASAC
sought legal advice, and the bank
put a hold on the funds.
In the other version, according
to NCSA pesident Duff Regan, the
funds were the moneys collected
by the chapter from local opera-
tions and the new assocation didn’t
want them diverted to ASAC’s
multi-state administration and over-
head. However, with the funds
blocked, after several months the
two groups reached an agreement
to split the difference and go their
separate ways, Regan said.
Now the two associations will
compete for membership and sup-
port in the same market.
Muller said in a phone interview
he was not aware of the NCSA or
the history involving the bank
funds. While based in Charlotte,
the concrete site development
company where he is employed
has interests in other markets in
the Carolinas and belongs to ASAC
Charles Richmond, Eldeco Inc.;
second vice-president – Gray Curry,
ACF Environmental; treasurer –
Mike Fitzsimmons, Wayne Brothers
Inc.; administrator – Earl Capps,
Web-Don Inc.; general counsel –
Fenton Erwin, Erwin Bishop Capi-
tano & Moss PA.; and general con-
tractor consultant – John Mowery,
Harkin Builders.
Other ASAC directors include:
John McPhail, Maxson and Associ-
ates Inc.; Zach Scott, Max Heavy
Equipment. chapters in Charleston and
Columbia, and Muller thought it
reasonable tht ASAC have a chap-
ter in Charlotte, where he lives.
“I didn’t know about the other
organization,” he said. “I reached
out to some pretty strong subecon-
tractors who didn’t know about as
well.” He said he thought it was
“vital to get this one (ASAC) going
as well.”
In addition to Muller, other ASAC
Charlotte chapter executive mem-
bers include: First vice-president,
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The North Carolina Construction News — March-April 2018 — 11