May marks our 7 th anniversary. Happy anniversary to us! In light of that, we thought we’d revisit a piece from our April/May 2016 fifth anniversary issue where we caught up with some contractors we’d profiled in earlier editions.
Dan MacKay Construction
Location: Delbert, N.S.
Employees: 5
Annual Revenue: No available
Appeared in: July/August 2011
“I just finished a house yesterday,” Dan MacKay told us during a recent interview. “I love doing the final inspection. Making sure everyone’s happy.” This Nova Scotia-based company still does about two new builds a year, and fills in the gaps with smaller renovation jobs.
That build was a 2,400-sq.-ft. bungalow with some upscale details – a tray ceiling, some nice outdoor lighting – just outside Truro. Recently, MacKay and his team completed a showpiece of a 7,000-sq.-ft. home in the same subdivision. (Yes, word of mouth still lands the company most of its jobs.) That three-story home took nine months to complete.
Not much has changed at the company in recent years. MacKay still focuses on doing top-quality work and planning ahead so there are few gaps in the calendar. But there’s a bit more talk of “being selective” with projects, and golfing.
MacKay Construction is celebrating its 35 th anniversary this year and the main members of the team – Rod Nelson and Hal Otter son – are still on board as they have been since the early days. “I do plan on slowing down a bit in the next few years. We’re good for a bit. I’m 61 now,” says MacKay.
His other passion – golf – might be taking up a bit more of his time, particularly in the offseason, as he travels to Florida every March. He’s also part owner in a nearby golf course.
With much of his team close to his age too, he’s not sure the long-term future of the brand. There’s still time to plan for that, and still enough passion for the work, and enough work, to keep MacKay Construction going strong. “I still love doing it.”
—By Diane Peters