Building Moments: Beyond the Work at Val Vista
On a typical day at Val Vista Lakes, pavement and waterline replacements move forward with steady precision. Crews work methodically down the road, milling nearly a foot of asphalt in front of residents’ homes. While it’s an essential step in improving the roadway, it’s not lost on the team how much this work can disrupt daily routines.
In the middle of one of those days, an unexpected situation presented itself. Resident Tina Miller approached the team with an urgent problem. Her senior golden retriever was showing alarming signs of illness, and with her driveway blocked, she had no way to get to the emergency vet.
Without hesitation, the crew stepped in. Superintendent Drew Perryman and Field Engineers Mike Seivert and Ben Makinen carefully carried the dog out of the construction zone, navigating the active work area before loading it into the back of a truck. They drove it past the milling operation to meet Tina on the other side, making sure she could get on her way. Thankfully, the dog ended up being okay, diagnosed with a severe case of vertigo. The team later made sure both Tina and her dog were safely transported back home. She was grateful—and for the crew, it was simply part of the job, “We just figured this is what you do,” Ben shared. “A woman’s dog needs help—you take a minute to make sure they’re taken care of.”
Moments like these are a reflection of what it means to work inside an active, lived-in community like Val Vista Lakes.
“It’s a beautiful neighborhood, with a lot of kind neighbors,” Ben said. “Even the ones who, at times, felt overwhelmed by the construction warmed up to it.” That kind of trust isn’t built by accident. It’s something the team is intentional about every day. “Safety is always first,” he explained. “We’re constantly asking ourselves, ‘Is this condition safe for our neighbors?’ and actively working to make the area safer. But beyond that, we try to integrate ourselves into the community—stop viewing ourselves as outsiders and more as neighbors.”
That mindset—being present, communicative, and genuinely considerate—carries through every part of the project.
“Simply caring about people goes a long way.”
And while the work itself is complex, it’s often the small, unplanned moments that leave the biggest impact.
For Ben and the team, helping that resident wasn’t extraordinary—it was a reminder. “I think it just re-emphasized the importance of community and heart when it comes to our work out there,” Ben reflected. It’s those moments—the ones that don’t show up on schedules or drawings—that quietly define what the work is really about.
Beyond the day-to-day progress, there’s also a strong sense of pride in how the team has come together. “Seeing the growth in so many individuals on the team has been extremely rewarding,” Ben shared, “And the positive feedback from the Town has definitely been a plus. It really is the dream team out here at Val Vista Lakes.”
As the project moves into its next phase, the team is carrying those experiences forward, applying the lessons learned in Phase 1 to guide Phase 2, both in how the work gets done and how they continue showing up for the community.
At the end of the day, projects like Val Vista Lakes aren’t just about improving infrastructure, but about building relationships, earning trust, and showing up for the communities that surround the work.
And sometimes, it’s about showing up for the moments no one plans for.
