Celebrating 70 Years - A Brief History of A1DesignBuild
If you didn’t know, A1DesignBuild is a builder of homes in Bellingham and Whatcom County, WA.
“Since 1955” reflects the year this entity began doing business as A-1 Builders, before which it was known as Washington Builders (from 1928), and about which we know nothing, other than, way back then, it was a tailgate operation selling roofing and siding.
Rick Dubrow bought A-1 from Ralph Shell in 1976. Ralph was in the foundation-repair business, and Rick was helping a friend with his foundation. Knowing little of such things himself, Rick consulted Ralph, who first offered him a job, and next offered him the business so that he, Ralph, could go fishing like a proper retired guy. Rick took him up on the first offer — it seemed an expedient way to help his friend with the foundation if nothing else. After six months working for Ralph alongside his only other employee, the aptly named Leroy Mason, Rick took Ralph up on the second offer.
With the $5,000 purchase price came some old tools, a beat-up truck, a decent reputation and best of all, Leroy, who was, of course, priceless: a knowledgeable shovel and hammer man with a philosopher’s heart and a farmer’s work ethic.
A1DesignBuild - Home Builders in Bellingham and Whatcom County, WA
A1DesignBuild Evolves into a Builder of Homes in Bellingham and Whatcom County
A-1 was all about solid foundations then, and it was dirty, back-breaking work. It was hard to keep quality employees. So, Rick took what he learned from Leroy about doing things right so you didn’t have to do them again, and began building an enterprise that was less about breaking your back and more about breaking the mold of being house builders in Bellingham and Whatcom County. Gradually he began the process of moving from strong foundations to strong homes, via repairs, remodels and custom work.
Three things set him apart as things progressed: first, his hippie, tree-hugging sensibilities, which flowed naturally into his responsible, future-focused approach to building and preservation; second, his notion that quality home building goes hand-in-hand with community building, and third, his ever-growing understanding that design intent is inextricably linked to quality construction, and that the more closely the two disciplines align, the better the outcomes for all.
At some point, the design part became so aligned with the build part that they got hitched. In 1990 Adaptations Design Studio was created, supporting the A-1 production team with sound, intentional design. Adaptations Studio kept its maiden name, but the two businesses acted as one, as did their now-married owners, Rick Dubrow and Cindi Landreth. Before they knew it, Rick had owned A-1 Builders* for nearly 40 years. Like Ralph before him, Rick and Cindi had ideas about hiking, biking, wild mushroom foraging and other retirement stuff.
A1DesignBuild Becomes a Co-Op
In 2016, with 17 employees, the idea of a worker-owned cooperative emerged; what a great way to pass the pencil and hammer: maintain A-1’s values while giving its new owners the opportunity to advance their vision, just as Rick had done before them, and Ralph before that. In 2017, Maggie, Patrick, Shawn, and Justus began a new era for A1-Builders, whose official name became A1DesignBuild July 1, 2020.
In 2030, A1 will be 75 years old. What might that company look like? We envision a thriving, employee-owned organization celebrated as a business that not only represents the highest standard for home design and construction, but has made a significant, contribution to the energy performance, aesthetics, affordability and longevity of Bellingham housing.
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