Russell Construction
06/10
We always have many exciting things happening at The Waters, and in this blog post we want to tell you about a local celebrity who not only works here, but also lives at The Waters.
You may recognize her from HGTV’s Hometown Takeover Wetumpka. It’s Josie Russell, Sales and Marketing Director for Russell Construction, one of our preferred builders at The Waters; and Realtor with New Waters Realty! Only about 25 miles from The Waters, the excitement of the renovations in Wetumpka is being felt all over our region.
We sat down with Josie to find out more about all of these projects she’s involved in. Here’s what she shared with us.
Josie Russell Talks About Hometown Takeover Wetumpka & Life at The Waters
Tell us about what you do on a daily basis.
I find projects and work with owners to make their dreams become a reality by helping them on the front end of a project with planning, design, and budgeting. We work on commercial, healthcare, and residential projects. As the project progresses into the construction phase, I am the liaison between project management and the client, oftentimes on the job site as well, depending on the project. Currently, I am the lead project manager for all residential new construction projects. My days never look the same!
What was your involvement in Hometown Takeover Wetumpka?
HGTV reached out to Russell Construction to be the construction manager for all renovations for the TV series. I was the lead project manager for the renovations and assisted in design with a wonderfully talented design and build team, including Ben and Erin.
It is a special feeling that they reached out to us, and it was very daunting to be trusted with renovating an entire town. It was an extremely fast paced environment where special attention had to be paid to every little detail. The show is really putting Wetumpka on the map and will be a benefit to everyone in the community, whether you live or work there.
You can read a recap of each episode on our blog here.
Why is the revival of small towns in the River Region important?
The renovations in Wetumpka and the whole point of the show is really more widespread than people may initially think. Our goal was to create a model that any small town in America could take and do in their own town to promote economic growth. Small towns are the heartbeat of America and where so many of us are in industries that are crucial to the financial architecture of our towns and cities. Proving that our plan is going to work for a small town like Wetumpka gives the rest of us the hope that if you put these measures in place, your town too can also begin to thrive in its own way.
What is your role in building homes at The Waters and being a New Waters Realty agent?
Russell Construction started as a residential contractor 38 years ago. In our first few years in business, Steve Russell built over 200 homes running the business himself out of his pick up truck. He really did commit his life to growing this business, and we quickly grew into commercial, healthcare, and industrial construction.
Now, we are circling back to our roots a little bit with my experience in the real estate market and finding wonderful opportunities to grow our business, particularly in The Waters neighborhood. We now have 6 spec homes started with 8 more starting soon. I design and build all of these homes and assist our customers with any custom home they can dream up.
Why did you decide to build your own home at The Waters?
We have family who live at The Waters already, and we have enjoyed coming to visit them in years past. The time was finally right, so we decided to make the leap to build our own house here. We love the walkability of the neighborhood and the neighborly feeling you get. We like to be active and outdoors, and The Waters provides so many opportunities to partake in that. We found that when we were bored at our old house, we would drive to The Waters to find something to do. That’s when we decided to settle here for good.
We love the golf carts, the amenities, the events, and that the people really care. The community and the people in it are really what make the neighborhood so great.
In all that you do with your work in construction and real estate, what’s your favorite part of the job(s)?
I love that the decisions I make in my job affect a family, business, or community in a positive way. Making someone’s dream home come to life or finding the perfect location and building a commercial space that allows someone to grow their business and livelihood is what makes this a dream job for me. At the end of a project I truly feel like I have made a difference in someone’s life and hopefully made it easier for them to achieve their dreams in the process. I truly obsess over a project once I start on it to make sure it is perfect for the client because that’s what I would want someone to do for me. Falling in love with doing this job was easy!
Josie is such an asset to our community in so many ways! We are thankful to have her in our corner and looking forward to all that’s ahead!
