Episode 76: Your Builder Your Ally

From engineering roots to award-winning custom homes, Kevin Leskiw of Upward Construction shares how trust, teamwork, and strong communication turn challenges into opportunities.. Tune in now!

Listen to “Episode 76: Your Builder, Your Ally” on Spreaker.

You will also find “Measure Twice, Cut Once” on iTunes, Spotify, Spreaker, and on HAVAN’s YouTube channel.

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Co-Host, podcast editor: Jennifer-Lee Gunson: jPod Creations
Co-Host, Mike Freedman, AI Technology & Design
Production: Rami Films

Kevin Leskiw, Principal, Upward Construction

With over 30 years of industry experience, Kevin is the visionary behind Upward. His impressive portfolio spans more than 3,500 homes and contributes to over $870 million in construction value. Kevin’s extensive industry knowledge informs every aspect of the company, while his leadership empowers teams of skilled project managers and site professionals to excel.

Known for his analytical, pragmatic approach, Kevin consistently finds practical solutions to complex challenges. His dedication to quality and precision ensures that projects are crafted to the highest standards.

He also brings a personal touch, building lasting relationships with clients and colleagues alike. This blend of expertise and care makes Kevin a highly respected leader in the construction industry.

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Listen and like for your chance to win a gas BBQ compliments of our Podcast Partner FortisBC.

Episode 76: Your Builder, Your Ally

Transcript

INTRO

0:00:03

Mike, so great to see you again for another episode of HAVAN’s podcast, Measure Twice, Cut Once.

0:00:08

Jennifer Lee, always great to see you.

0:00:09

Always great to be back in this studio and always great to have these wonderful, fun conversations that we always have.

0:00:17

Yeah.

0:00:17

And today we have someone that’s actually never been here. We should have like, you know, like on SNL, they have five timers club. We should have the first timers club.

0:00:26

Yeah.

0:00:26

Next time.

0:00:26

Well, we won’t be a first time or next time you come, but next time we have a first time around, we should have like a special shirt they have to wear and stuff.

0:00:32

Yeah. I like it. Or a shot.

0:00:35

I don’t know what, what’s your favorite shot.

0:00:39

Just like that, we’re about to have the most candid conversation we’ve ever had in this industry. Well, today we have Kevin Leskiw from Upward Construction.

0:00:46

How are you? Really good.

0:00:48

Really good.

0:00:48

Glad to be here.

0:00:49

Good.

0:00:49

Thank you for joining us today. We’re always thrilled to meet new people.

0:00:54

Yeah, we are. And you’ll either find out if you like Mike and I now or later. We’re like mold. We grow on you. And we’d like to get to know you a little bit better. And before we start talking about some of the projects that you’re doing and awards and all that good stuff, can you tell us a little about your journey to where you are now?

0:01:15

Because we always meet people where they’re at, but obviously this wasn’t where you started. How’d you get into this line of work?

0:01:20

How long have you been doing it?

0:01:21

Tell us a little about your company.

0:01:23

All the details.

0:01:24

Sure.

0:01:24

Yeah. Yeah.

0:01:24

That’s a, that could be a long story, but I’ll, I’ll try.

0:01:27

You have five minutes.

0:01:28

Five minutes. Okay. Time limit. Mike’s got a timer over there. Well, I’ve got, I started out in, in engineering actually. So, I have an engineering background, structural engineering, which transitioned me into the start of my construction career.

0:01:45

I did a lot of construction support in engineering. And from there it got into residential construction, which is really what I love. Upward construction itself has been around for 22 years. Renovations and custom home builds are what we do.

0:02:04

I’ve been doing the custom home side there for approximately five years. And before that, I actually have a bunch of multifamily experience that I brought together. So, the two of those together are kind of like transitioning us to our future kind of specialty.

0:02:23

But custom homes are always our magical spot. And did you work for Upward before you owned it? Because someone else owned it? Or how did you figure out, like, this is the company I want to own.

0:02:40

No, I met the original owner, the founder.  And we kind of talked for a couple of years. And I got to know him and the business. And then decided, yeah, this is what I wanted to do as my career, you know, for the company – the remaining years of my working life.

And so far, no regrets.

Yeah, no regrets.

0:03:00

I got a quick question for you, just because we want to get to know you a bit better.

0:03:04

What’s your favorite aspect of this industry? Like, what gets you up? What gets the hair on the back of your neck standing up? What excites you?

0:03:12

It’s really exciting when you build a home for someone and there’s lots of ups and downs through building a home, all the decisions people have to make, the stress and successes with schedule and costs. But the real excitement comes at the end where people like are like, wow, here’s this thing that they’ve created, we’ve created for them together as a team. And they just like, they can, they can They have this like, wow, I get to have this for the years and years and years to come. That’s really super exciting. Well, it’s so interesting, the whole process, because I’m a daughter of a contractor and it’s hard because they see so much movement with like the foundation, the home being built up. And then there comes a point where it doesn’t look like much is happening.

0:03:59

And then all of a sudden, all the finishes start going in and then the clients get excited. Its kind of is like, you have to maintain that expectation because it kind of goes, it’s like a roller coaster.

0:04:08

The client’s kind of go down a little bit.

0:04:09

They’re like, oh, this feels like nothing because they’re putting all the important things at home, like electrical wires and things like that. And then all of a sudden, all the sexy material comes up. So, then they’re like, oh, yeah. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah.

0:04:20

There’s, there’s those lulls sometimes where it looks like stuff isn’t happening, but it’s some of the most important things, the stuff that is on the walls that you don’t see but is important for controlling all those systems in the home. Well, some of us spend a lot of time talking about that. So, you’re saying all the right things. Kevin, you’ve been doing this for quite a long time. You’ve obviously created quite a bit of success as is evident by the wins and the awards and just your position in the industry. What, in your opinion, is your secret to success?

0:04:50

What is the one thing that you’ve done really, really well that has led to this 22 -year legacy and continues to grow?

0:04:59

Well, I don’t know if there’s any real secret. I think of it as pretty simple. I’m always just upfront and honest and practical.

0:05:08

And I’ve found that, I guess, that has become the success for me. People just, they get what they want, or they learn along the way. So I think being upfront and open is what’s been the success. And sometimes people come with you for the project, come to you first before they have anyone on the team, like design or anything like that. Like the project we’re about to talk about, California Dream, that you did with Sarah Gallop and design. How do you lead them to finding the right team then if you’re the first one on the job?

0:05:47

Yeah, that’s an interesting story. And one of the success that we’ve had. And so, we had someone that was living in California and approached us and wanted to move here and have a house that resembled the lifestyle they had in California at the time.

0:06:05

And they were looking at buying a completed house and also looking as well at lots in both in Victoria and Vancouver. And I toured them around and showed them a couple of options.

0:06:19

And the one that they ended up choosing was the more difficult approach. It was come up here, buy the lot, go through the build process, and move in a year and a half later instead of just tomorrow you can get the keys to this other place. So, it was actually, there was a balancing for them.

0:06:42

Fortunately, they chose the later option, the custom home build, and yeah, it went from there.

0:06:48

Then how did they end up choosing Sarah Gallop?

0:06:50

Is it someone you recommended, or were they looking on their own?

0:06:54

They looked on their own and chose Sarah Gallop. Everything, we get a few options, usually three or four and they went with, chose Sarah Gallop and Sarah was awesome. The team there developed a great set of drawings and worked with the clients to get the design intent that they were focused on.

0:07:17

Yeah, we love Sarah.

0:07:18

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, she’s great. And that’s the thing I just like to discuss with people, because like I said, I know from having a building family, sometimes it’s the architect that will suggest the builders and the interior designers will give you like a list. And then sometimes it’s the builder that has to put forward the names or sometimes interior design. So, I think sometimes people don’t realize that it’s like it depends where you get pulled onto the project. Yeah, definitely.

0:07:41

I got a question for you. I mean, this probably happens to you a lot where you’ll hire, like, imagine myself. I don’t do this for a living anymore. I don’t know anybody. So, I’ve come to you and I want to bring in other people in this project.

0:07:53

What advice do you have for people to assemble a team? Is there anything you suggest? to people when they’re thinking about this? Because obviously it’s almost like a marriage at that point, right? If there’s a designer, you have to work with that designer. If there’s an engineer, an architect, and more importantly, the client has to work with all of you for two plus years potentially as well.

0:08:11

What advice do you have for people assembling a team, so they get the right team, but also the right synergy where everybody’s working together? Yeah, definitely important to have alignment. There are some that are more important than others. Obviously, an architect, interior designer, there’s a lot of hours spent with them, and they have the some of the biggest impact on the outcome. Others are important as well. But across the board, the most important thing is relationship.

0:08:39

And people have different personalities, different kind of ways that they work together with people. And having a good alignment with people is just important from day one. And it goes for the builder as well. You have to get along with that person for, you know, upwards of two years sometimes. And because there’s a design stage, the build stage, and then the closeout stage.

0:09:02

And so, getting along personality -wise is super important.

0:09:06

And sometimes things can delay the project. What we found out about this one is this project was during COVID.

0:09:12

So, we all know what happened at that time. A lot of things took a little bit longer to complete. So, you really want to make sure that everybody is kind of on the same page and getting along because We can’t plan these things happening. Yeah, yeah. There were quite a few delays and, in the industry, you probably know that there were a couple of long lead time things, appliances and windows and fortunately we were able to get those decisions from these clients of ours up front and so even though the windows

0:09:40

had to come all the way from Germany, we’d pre -planned so they arrived right in the right time in the schedule. That’s great. And how do you keep kind of the client’s expectations real? Because they don’t know what it takes to pump. That’s why they’ve got you. But sometimes they just don’t understand like why things are taking longer, right?

0:10:00

Yeah, there’s always hiccups along the way. And that’s where you just kind of have to communication, you know, it gets back to that personality alignments that just have that strong communication as well. And so that you’re understanding each other and, and that you’re, you’re doing everything you can and planning for it. Um, you know, like the, like the windows that came from Germany, they did get held up in a port in New York, but we were able to rearrange the schedule and get some other things happening on site so that they could come, you know, parts of them could come a few weeks later. So now that we know a little about you and a little about how you work with others, let’s talk a little about this project itself. I mean, we have two projects to talk about.

0:10:38

First, you are a finalist, which is great. Best outdoor living space, new or renovated home. But more importantly, you won an award. And any of us who’ve been privileged enough to be on that stage know that that’s no small feat. to win an award. And first of all, congratulations to you and your entire team.

0:10:58

Can you give us a little overview of this project and what made it special? Like, why did this project win an award in the first place? Yeah, thank you for that. You know, these clients, they were, they were great, first of all.

0:11:13

And, and I think that part of it was that they just wanted, they wanted everything. And they chose some great spaces.

0:11:23

They’re very active social people. So, they, they envisioned their place being like the place where they host all of their friends and have great get together.

0:11:32

So, every space in the home was really well organized.

0:11:35

out and Sarah and her team contributed to that a lot with like picking finishes and making sure that it was all set up for that.

0:11:47

Yeah, and it takes like a great team to put that all together and make sure that you have it as well.

0:11:56

I know Sarah was on a little earlier talking about California Dream, but can you tell us in your own words what the project’s all about and help us paint that picture a little bit more? The dream, the California Dream? Yeah. The dream, the dream. So, the dream was specifically The, the owners were nervous about moving to Vancouver, coming from California, you know, everyone knows it rains a lot here. Yeah.

0:12:22

Staying in California. Yeah. So, they were like, okay. And they’re moving back here with two teenage girls that they wanted to expose to, uh, to Canada. And, um, cause they’re from here, they’re Canadians and, but they wanted to, to hold onto this, the California, the sunny kind of lifestyle.

0:12:38

And so, this, this home, the vision, uh, was to, to have that.

0:12:42

And we.

0:12:43

We created that by having this huge outdoor covered space.

0:12:47

There are skylights over this outdoor deck that is very large and that you can have a full-on party just on this deck alone.

0:12:56

And there’s fire pit and outdoor eating area.

0:12:58

And so that really created this vision.

0:13:01

And it also faces west, so the sunset goes down.

0:13:05

You get great sun there all day long, all year long too. What area is it in? West Vancouver.

0:13:11

Oh, beautiful. Do you ever get invited over for their patio parties? Occasionally, I’ve been there a couple times. Take Mike and I as your plus ones. Yeah, for sure. Before we get too much into setting up our social schedule for the next few weeks, we do have to take a couple moments to take a short break to thank our sponsors.

0:13:27

So, we’ll be back in a couple minutes and we’re going to keep this conversation going.

Measure Twice Cut Once is grateful to our podcast partners, FortisBC, BC Housing and Trail Appliances. Support from our partners helps us share expert knowledge and resources with families looking to build, design and renovate the home right for you.

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0:13:59

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0:14:05

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Trail Appliances, makes everyday life better with the best selection in Western Canada. Hassle -free delivery and a price match guarantee. You’ll always get the best deal at Trail Appliances. You’ll love buying an appliance as much as you’ll love using it. Affordable, accessible, quality housing is top of mind issue for many British Columbians.

All right, we are back and we’re talking about a super cool project called California Dream. Now, if you’re watching this at home, you’re listening at home, there’s lots of links. You can have a look at this and obviously see the finished project, which is fantastic.

0:15:05

One of the things we don’t talk about is along the way, there are always some challenges, the unexpected, the uh -oh, whatever it is. Can we talk about some of those things and how you were able to overcome them on this project, too? Because we want to make sure we’re showing both sides of what it is to do a project, but also the value of working with a professional because when these things come up that’s when it’s the most advantageous. to have someone like yourself with your experience.

0:15:27

So, let’s get into that, if you wouldn’t mind.

0:15:29

Yeah, sure.

0:15:30

I mentioned a little bit of the scheduling already and anticipating things that were going to take a while.

0:15:35

So that was one that I’ve already commented on, making sure things coming from outside of North America were going to come on time.

0:15:43

For the most part, there weren’t any mishaps there. that one of the big challenges was the site itself. It’s on a hillside on the North Shore.

0:15:54

Access is only from the upper side of the street.

0:15:58

There’s no back lane, no access at all. Did you have to blast rock too? We luckily did not have to blast rock, but we were within inches of having to do so. It’s both properties there. Yeah. We got really lucky there.

0:16:12

But delivering things like we had some I think three 45-foot-long steel beams that had to be delivered and craned onto the site, setting up the crane on the road, which is not a normal road. It’s like a, it’s really a lane. It’s like an access road, or is it? It’s like a little lane that is like single, you know, one way, about 10 feet wide. And we had to set up the crane sideways and lift these things. way out to the far end of the house.

0:16:40

And so that was a real challenge.

0:16:42

We actually had to try it three times.

0:16:44

They showed up with too small of a crane first time, and then the crane pad wasn’t correct. So, some challenges like that happen. Is that stressful like when you’re dealing with that at the time, or do you just put trust in the professionals and say, okay, these guys know a lot about crane operations or whatever it is. Like how do you mitigate stress as you’re carrying this project? There’s always a way to plan for a solution.

0:17:06

And so, getting forward, you know, getting information brought forward from a geotech engineer, for example, to create that support for a crane to set up was, was one of the things we had to do. And did you have. have to get traffic controlling people as well, or? Yes. A lot of people don’t.

0:17:24

We’ve never really talked about this podcast, and that’s the thing, because we’ve definitely built in this area that you’re talking about.

0:17:29

And that’s the thing, its people don’t realize when you want to build homes in these areas, a good contractor is going to set you up with that.

0:17:36

But that is another added cost that people don’t think about building a home. But again, when you have someone like Kevin, he’ll be able to explain that and communicate with you, like, we’re going to need this to do it properly, and this is why it costs this amount.

0:17:49

Yeah, definitely. There’s always coordination things and traffic control are an important one. And it was, it was used a lot there. And like I mentioned, it’s a one-way street. So, closing down that street happened quite a bit. Neighbors probably didn’t love it either.

0:18:04

Oh, they were, they were, you know, we went around ahead of time and, you know, So I think that’s a really good point.

0:18:20

I think that’s a really good point.

0:18:26

potential things down the road. Yeah. Well, this is the thing people don’t understand.

0:18:30

You’re on site for maybe two years, then I’m on site for 20 and I still have to live with those neighbors. So, a good builder is an extension of a courteous neighbor. We were talking, you were talking about windows, you were talking about steel beams, and obviously you can’t do one before you can do the other. What happens when the unexpected happens? Like, you know, as an example, if you were waiting for those windows to come in and remember that ship that got lost in the Suez Canal, like what happens when you have that cascading effect where one thing delays everything else?

0:18:57

How do you deal with that? Can you deal with that? Yeah, there’s usually ways to deal with it. Fortunately, we haven’t had anything that had an extensive delay, although sometimes maybe that’s a result of us adjusting and adjusting is sometimes what you have to do. If a steel beam isn’t available, you create an alternate solution, maybe approach a structural engineer to see if there’s a concrete formed beam that can be subbed in, or a timber beam, something like that. And a lot of that does reflect the budget, too.

0:19:33

Again, having that foresight of knowing what you can and cannot do. No one really loves talking about budget. Of course, we talk about it a lot here on this podcast. But how do you kind of guide the budget with the clients? We use a forecasted cost approach, which I’ve found works. And that was one of the things I brought forward from my kind of multifamily experiences.

0:19:54

You’re always forecasting what the end cost is going to be. Instead of just creating a monthly invoice for, here’s the work that happened in the past, we forecast what things are going to cost. And that I find really helps people kind of understand the impact of the decisions. Because there’s so many decisions. You get 10 decisions that $1 ,000 each there’s $10 ,000 it all adds up so you have to forecast for that and then circle back with them on a regular basis, and we do that once a month, so we forecast here’s all the things we’ve decided on and and why it’s headed in this direction. So on the subject of communication, I can hear a little bit differently we’re talking about communication with the client.

0:20:36

Two questions. One, how big is your team? And two, how do you make sure that you’re communicating effectively with them and stakeholders like the team at Sarah Gallup and the client? How do you manage that flow of communication so that everybody’s in the loop, you’re transparent, and nothing gets missed? Yeah, we have lots of forms of communication. I’d say that’s another thing to touch on for this project.

0:21:00

The California Dream Build was through the first half of it, the clients were actually still living in California. So, we used an app called BuilderTrend. We do daily logs. on there with pictures and comments, things completed and also questions for the homeowners. Maybe there’s a way that things can go together in two different ways. And so, we asked the question.

0:21:21

That was really helpful to have that.

0:21:24

And I think everyone, even local people, really appreciate those updates. They get to see, wherever they are, they see what’s happened that day. So that’s one form of communication and also regular site meetings and schedule updates and strong communication both phone and email with our team. I love that kind of apps that are doing that now. We never, my dad would kill me for that. We don’t use apps because he’s older, but all the younger builders like yourself are cutting edge.

0:21:59

It’s kind of like the daycare app where they show you how your child’s doing during daycare. It’s like how your house is doing, right? You can check up on, you’re like, oh, my house looks good today.

0:22:08

Kevin’s giving it the nice love and care it deserves. Yeah. What’s your philosophy on building? Like at a high level, you know, you’re building, you’re putting things together, but Everyone’s different on how they do it.

0:22:17

How do you customize the approach, so it works for you and it’s uniquely yours and your own?

0:22:25

I love challenges and so I like to create sometimes a method that maybe other people haven’t thought of.

0:22:36

Sometimes that’s not possible, but whenever there’s a way to kind of achieve something that seems to be unachievable, that’s what I take on as a challenge. And it could be something as easy as figuring out a different way for things to go together, a way for things to be delivered to the construction site, a different kind of team member to join our team to supplement the process. What are some of your upcoming projects? Can you let us know, like give us a little sneak peek? Anything interesting and cool? Oh yeah, lots of very interesting and cool things.

0:23:10

We’ve got some small ones and big ones. Like this one, there’s one that’s a very high -end, customized home, again, on the North Shore, West Vancouver, and great views, great homeowner, great client, and a good designer group. That one will probably be submitted for hopefully another award submission in the coming year. There we go. We can’t wait for that. Another interesting project with all of the focus now on affordability and multiple homes.

0:23:51

We’re actually doing a project where we’re taking a heritage house and adding laneway homes, creating four units on the same property. So that one’s really interesting and underway right now. Well, it’s kind of neat because we’re taking something old and we’re making it new again.

0:24:07

Isn’t that just a great analogy for the entire industry?

0:24:11

You’re obviously on the bleeding edge of what’s happening and you’re having these conversations. I mean, for those of us who are in the industry, we are seeing it in the magazine afterwards. We got to wrap up pretty quickly, but before we do, I’m just wondering if you can tell us what’s the next big trend you’re seeing out there? What’s hot? Like if someone was thinking about starting a project right now, what’s cool? There are Lots of super custom cool things for within a home, everything from hidden doors to appliances that you can control remotely.

0:24:46

But I think on the bigger picture, the big trend for smaller multiple homes is going to be something that we see a lot of. The recent provincial mandate to have six plexes and four plexes on every single single-family lot.

0:25:02

It’s gonna eventually get figured out and we’re gonna see a lot of those come through. And you’ll be ready.

0:25:08

And we’ll be ready, yeah.

0:25:10

awesome well you know what first of all it’s been great having you we always like i said we love meeting new people and you know a lot of great takeaways from this one of which is listen you want to get a builder who knows their market who knows the area and is experienced and capable of getting things done um hey you sometimes have to expect the unexpected, you have to roll with it.

0:25:32

And again, that goes back to the capability and skillset and the experience of someone like yourself.

0:25:36

And lastly, the power of relationships and the power of open communication to create successful results. This is all great information. We really appreciate you sharing that with us today. And Kevin, I have an important question to ask you. Can you give us one more piece of wisdom before we go? One thing that you’d love homeowners to know about construction.

0:26:00

One thing, wow, one magic thing. There’s always a solution to any obstacle that’s overcome.

0:26:11

I’d say that.

0:26:12

Perfect. Love it.

0:26:14

Including if that obstacle needs to be that you want to win a barbecue.

0:26:18

And boy, have we got something for you.

0:26:21

We always appreciate you joining us here, listening and watching us.

0:26:25

If you’d like to win something really cool, all you have to do is like or share this episode.

0:26:28

Tell your family, tell your friends, anyone you meet on the street doesn’t really matter. By doing so, you will have the opportunity and the chance to win a Napoleon Prestige P500 stainless steel natural gas barbecue valued at $1 ,600.

0:26:41

Compliments of our podcast partners, FortisBC. Details are available at www.havan.ca/measuretwicecutonce.  And you did win for best outdoor space. Did they have a barbecue?

0:26:54

They did. See, those are Mike’s friends.

0:26:56

It was probably a really nice barbecue. It was, very nice. With this beautiful Napoleon Prestige P500 stainless steel natural gas barbecue from FortisBC. There we go. Thank you so much for coming on and for notes and links to everything mentioned on today’s episode, include including resources shared by Kevin, go to www.havan.ca/measuretwicecutonce .

0:27:15

Thank you to Trail Appliances, FortisBC, BC Housing, Rami Films, J -Pod Creations, and AI Technology and Design. It takes a team to build a home, and it does a podcast. Thank you so much for joining us today.

Thank you.

Thank you.