Caddell Construction, the Montgomery-based company which was awarded the July 2017 contract to build The University of Alabama’s new residence halls, recently caught the attention of some members of the UA community after the Trump administration awarded contracts to build prototypes of the proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall.
Caddell was among the four companies contracted to build the 30-foot long and 30-foot wide prototype of a proposed border wall that was a central part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. The other companies selected to build wall prototypes are located in Tempe, Arizona; Houston, Texas and Philadelphia, Mississippi.
The four contracts are said to be worth up to $500,000 a piece, and Caddell was chosen out of over 200 companies that sent in proposals to construct the border wall prototype. The prototypes will be tested for endurance and permeability.
Matt Skinner, executive director of the University’s Construction Administration, explained the University’s choice of Caddell.
“For large or complex projects, the University prequalifies responsive general contractors in an effort to ensure the contractors have successfully completed similar projects and have the financial strength to manage the project,” Skinner said. “The freshmen residence hall is the first project on which Caddell Construction has been the low responsive bidder in the recent past.”
The Trump-sponsored border wall has come under criticism since he announced the idea during his presidential campaign. Although some people and businesses bear criticism for appearing to support Trump’s agenda, senior economics major Mike Smith believes that the construction company can complete the 500-student residence halls without promoting a political agenda.
“I don’t think it is a huge deal that Caddell was chosen to build a dorm for UA, as long as they remain committed and not be distracted by ridiculous projects like the wall and the financial instability of such a project,” said Smith, who is the executive director for the University’s chapter of College Democrats. “I doubt the University specifically chose this company because of its work regarding the wall.”
Although the construction company placed a bid to work on the proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall, Caddell has found itself out of the media spotlight and away from criticism.
Gerald Fraas, external affairs director for Young Americans for Freedom, argues the latter.
“Large-scale construction projects aren’t exactly something that a body can be picky with for political reasons,” said Fraas, a junior political science and economics major. “I’m sure there are churches out there constructed by a company that also built a Planned Parenthood clinic. The University likely put out a request for bids on this project long before the news broke that this company would be submitting a proposal for the construction of the border wall.”
Fraas later went on to say that the University was simply looking for the best possible fit to perform the contract, rather than choosing a company based on a political agenda.
The residence halls that Caddell is working on are scheduled to be finished before the end of the fall semester of 2018. The University contract is worth around $37.5 million.
