ABOUT US
The Lindy Construction Company was founded in 1979 by Cary S. Lindemann who was born, raised and currently lives in the Lansing, MI area with his wife of 21 years, Adelfa (Adie). Cary graduated from Mason High School in 1977 and then Lansing Community College with an AAS in the field of Structural Engineering Technologies and with extensive study in Computer Aided Design & Drafting (CADD) and Construction Management.
We spent the 1980’s and into the 90’s in and around Mid-Michigan performing commercial & retail building repairs & maintenance and minor construction & remodeling projects for local business’ including restaurants, retail outlets and a chain of 12 supermarkets.
In the mid to late 1990’s and into the 2000’s we began picking up several National accounts and performing commercial and retail construction, not only in Michigan but throughout the United States. From Texas to Colorado and Florida to Maine, plus many other states, cities & towns in between including everything from rural Iowa and Nebraska to all five Boroughs of New York City. During this same time period we were also expanding our local business by performing design, development & construction for many local and independent shops throughout Michigan.
By the 2010’s, after travelling the country for over 10 years and working in 36 of 50 States, we began to concentrate our efforts closer to home where today we continue to provide complete Design, Development and Construction services for national, local and independent retailers, restaurants & bars throughout Upper and Lower Michigan.
Would You Ask a Toddler to Rewire Your House?
Of course you wouldn’t, because he has no experience and well … he’s only three. However, between his naps he might be able to install a 200 amp service better than some residential contractors could design, develop and build your restaurant or retail facility. There are many codes, requirements, materials and techniques inherent with restaurant, retail and commercial construction that do not apply to residential. You will need qualified, experienced professionals.
The Lindy Construction Company Specializes in Commercial, Retail, Restaurant & Bar, Design, Development & Construction. Throughout Upper & Lower Michigan, Since 1979
Services, Rates & Policies
INTRODUCTION: The Lindy Construction Company provides commercial, retail, restaurant and bar Design, Development and Construction services throughout Michigan. If you’re planning on purchasing, leasing, building or remodeling your own facility, we can be of help. While some commercial or restaurant construction or remodel projects might be considered only cosmetic, most will require review by your local Health and/or Building Departments. Either way, it’s never advisable to proceed without inquiring and gaining these approvals. In the event that permits are required, engineered plans will also be required. In Michigan, any commercial construction project requiring a permit will require plans which have been approved by a professional Architect or Engineer.
THE PROCESS: The State of Michigan makes distinctions between residential and commercial construction. A Residential Builder License is required for residential projects the value of which reaches $600.00 or more. In contrast, professional engineering is required for commercial projects where the concern is more for public health and safety. Special codes apply for commercial construction that do not apply to residential such as those for zoning; occupancy; parking; handicap accessibility (ADA); fire alarms and fire suppression systems; emergency egress and lighting; energy management systems (EMS); energy conservation (ASHRAE) plus the Department of Agriculture, Health Department and Liquor Commission requirements for restaurants, bars and other food service facilities.
As a general rule, Designers design and Builders build. This is never more true than it is with commercial construction where professionally engineered plans are required. It’s become common for potential clients to first call on random residential builders for ideas, designs and estimates, many of whom have little to no experience with commercial, retail or restaurant design, development and construction. When contemplating your own restaurant or retail facility, one of the first calls made should be to a design professional rather than to a builder.
The normal process is as follows:
1) Secure funding – Have your financing ready before selecting a location
2) Find a location – Retain an Architect or other licensed design professional and not a Builder for insight, design ideas and estimates
3) Design and develop the facility – Produce engineered plans that match your vision and meet the approval of your local authorities
4) Obtain prices – Finally, with approved plans in hand, gather bids from qualified contractors
If you’re a potential client trying to develop a restaurant or retail project, you’ll want to consult with an experienced professional. The Lindy Construction Company provides all of the services necessary to navigate this process including Consulting, Estimating, Design & Development, Project Management and Construction. Please, call (517) 699-4585 for details and rates.
DESIGN: If you retain an Engineer or an Architect, your drawings will be completed in part by their in house Draftsmen and with the Engineer or Architect providing oversight and approval. Charges can run from $100.00 to $300.00 per hour or more and into the many thousands of dollars for a complete set of plans. If you retain The Lindy Construction Co to produce your plans, we are not the Engineer or the Architect…..we’re the Draftsmen and can produce the same set of plans, typically for much less. We then submit our electronic drawing files to one of several independent Engineers for treatment and approval. The Engineer’s involvement is less, therefore your price can be much lower and sometimes as little as half as much for the same approved drawings. As part of a Design and Development agreement, it’s typical to produce Conceptuals and either a Permit Set or a Bid Set of plans.
Conceptuals – Based on your ideas plus those of our development team, along with information garnered from your local authorities regarding items allowed, not allowed and those which are required, we’ll provide a series of conceptual sketches from which we can make refinements and decide which items you would or would not like to be incorporated into your final plan. Once a final design has been decided upon, we’ll produce either a Permit Set or a Bid Set of plans for review.
Permit Set – A permit set will contain only the minimum amount of information required by your governing agencies in order to approve your permits. This lack of detail lends itself to Contractor’s providing a “time and materials” rate rather than a firm bid price. Pages might include a Floor Plan; Lighting Plan; Mechanical, Electrical & Plumbing Plans (MEP); Equipment Plan & Schedule; Site Plan including Parking and Dumpsters; Fixture Plan including Egress and Occupancy; Fire Suppression and Fire Alarm Plans; A.D.A. Compliance; ASHRAE Compliance.
Bid Set – A Bid Set will include additional information and design details not found in a Permit Set such as those for specific materials, sizes, dimensions, finishes, etc. This is necessary if you intend to gather firm contractor bids. All Contractors will be bidding on the exact same things and you’ll be able to compare bids “apples to apples”. Without detailed plans to bid from, Contractors will only be guessing….Do you really want several verbal guesses? These preliminary estimates are not bids, quotes or proposals, they’re only guesses, they can vary greatly and are rarely accurate or enforceable. Some might intentionally provide you with a “low ball” estimate in order to secure the job and then charge high prices for extras later on, claiming that this and that was not included in the estimate. Whether working from a bid or on time and materials, be careful and get it all on paper.
DEVELOPMENT: Once you have retained our services, we will:
• conduct research and make the initial inquiries in order to determine the requirements of your local authorities.
• perform a thorough site survey in order to take measurements and gather other information crucial to the design of your facility.
• produce a set of plans as required by the governing agencies and as described in the Design section of this document
• submit the required documents, plans and applications to the governing agencies in order to expedite your permits.
It’s important to note that most Engineers or Architects do not provide complete development services. They might have limited experience with Restaurant Development, dealing with Health Departments or expediting permits. All of these services including design, development, permit expediting, project management and complete construction are offered by The Lindy Construction Co.
CONSTRUCTION: Whether working from a firm bid or on a time and materials rate, we can perform any part to all of the construction of your facility, including the Project Management.
Firm Bid – From bid set plans as described in the Design section of this document, we can provide you with a firm bid or a “fixed rate”. Unless you make design changes yourself or a governing agency does, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting and how much it will cost.
Time and Materials – Without bid set plans to bid from, we can provide you with a time and materials rate. This can be beneficial if you wanted to get started sooner or make design decisions as you build, however you will not know the final project cost up front.
Project Management – Whether using your subcontractors or ours, we can manage your project from start to finish. We’ll ensure that all documents are in order and develop a critical path schedule which all trades will follow. We’ll be on your job site daily to ensure quality control and forward progress. You’ll know exactly when it will be done and when you can open.
GENERAL CONTRACTING: Once you have commissioned a set of plans, it’s time to gather contractor bids. You’ll hire either a General Contractor (GC) to manage and build the entire facility or Subcontractors (Subs) if you’re acting as your own GC. If you hire a GC to build or remodel your facility they will handle every aspect of the project from pulling permits to hiring and paying subcontractors and the daily on site management. Your dealings and transactions will be with the GC alone and not with any of the Subs.
The Lindy Construction Company has an extensive network of professional contractors with which we work, including Designers, Engineers and Tradesmen. As General Contractors we’re able to provide every service and all of the trades required to present you with a start to finish “turn key” project. We’ll just hand you the keys.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Some clients want to be more involved in the construction of their facility and all are looking for ways to lower the costs. One of the best ways to accomplish both is by the client acting as their own General Contractor (GC).
If they were to hire an independent GC to build their facility, that GC would then hire all of the personnel required to complete the project including the subcontractors, general laborers, project manager and project superintendent. He would add his total costs for labor and materials and then add from 5% to 15% or more for profit on top of it all. On a $200,000 project these charges could be as much as an additional $30,000. Clients are able to save most or all of this by acting as GC and hiring their own Project Manager (PM).
As General Contractor, the client would be responsible for hiring the subcontractors and general laborers as needed, approving and signing the subcontract agreements and approving and making the progress payments to the subcontractors. The client will deal mainly with the PM who will manage the transactions between the client and the subcontractors as approved by the client.
As Project Manager for the client, The Lindy Construction Company will develop a critical path schedule, petition and gather subcontractor bids, insurance documents, W-9 forms, lien waivers, change orders and other required documents. We’ll create and manage subcontracts as approved and executed by the client. We’ll be on site daily as Project Superintendent to manage the day to day operations such as the scheduling of subcontractors and inspections, to oversee in the quality of the work being done and to ensure forward progress and that the project is completed on time and within budget.
MANAGEMENT TOOLS:
QUOTE, BID OR PROPOSAL: There is often confusion as to the differences between a quote, a bid and a proposal. Sometimes these terms get conflated and are used interchangeably. Each is a formal offer to provide a product or a service for a stated price but each has a completely different function than the others. Which one is which?
Quote – A quote is a fixed price, given either verbally or in writing, usually for an existing item or a simple service with minimal variables. Something that you can point to, such as “I can mow that yard for twenty dollars” or “You can buy one of these for fifty dollars”. Material suppliers can give a quote using a takeoff provided by a contractor. Some quotes tend to have a limited duration, such as 30 days, due to market and price fluctuations.
Bid – In the construction industry a bid is a fixed price given for something that has been pre-defined, typically with a detailed set of plans and specifications which describe the scope of work to be done, the materials to be used, the time frame required, payment terms, etc. All of the bidders will bid on the same work per the same plans and specifications. If the scope of work changes, plan revisions are drawn up and bidders can adjust their bids by submitting change orders.
Proposal – A proposal is prepared by the one who is pricing the work. Unlike with a bid, the work or the product has not already been clearly pre-defined; plans and specifications are incomplete or even non-existent. The scope of work, the materials, the price, terms, etc. will all be described in the proposal. “I propose to do this using these materials in this amount of time for this much money”.
ESTIMATES: We’re often asked for estimates by potential clients who are considering the lease or purchase of a space to construct their own restaurant or retail facility. If the intent is to rely on the estimate to help determine whether or not to acquire the space, it stands to reason that they would want the estimate to be as accurate as possible and the Contractor to honor it if they were to move forward. In reality, what they are really looking for is more of a quote, bid or proposal than an estimate.
It’s understandable that someone would want to know the expected cost before making a major financial commitment, however an estimate is not a firm and calculated price like they might get with a quote, bid or proposal. Without plans or clearly defined specifications for reference, an estimate is merely a guess at how much the project might cost. Given the lack of detailed design information, estimates are highly subjective and therefore also highly unreliable and not enforceable. Preliminary estimates come with no guarantees, but one way to help ensure better results is by asking the right Contractor. What is not understandable is that these potential clients would do their planning and budget, sign a lease or even purchase a building based on an arbitrary guess made by a potentially inexperienced and unqualified contractor.
Anyone can throw out an ill conceived “guess-timate” but an experienced professional can turn a wild guess into an educated one. The Lindy Construction Company has been providing Commercial, Retail, Restaurant and Bar Design, Development and Construction throughout Upper and Lower Michigan since 1979. In those years our portfolio has grown to include hundreds of independent and national brands. We can draw from that experience when evaluating your restaurant or retail project for an estimate. In order to produce a reliable estimate, a site survey may be required.
SITE SURVEYS: If you’ve decided that you want a preliminary estimate but have no detailed plans, we will need to perform a physical site survey. Depending upon the scope of work and the project location, a service charge may become necessary. Our goal is to work with you on the design and construction of your facility, so this initial survey fee can be refunded if we are hired for Design, Development and/or Construction. This policy helps to compensate us for time spent estimating for those who are just curious and it also helps to prevent bid shopping.
During the survey our estimator will walk through the site with you, listen to your ideas and present some of our own based upon our experience and general knowledge of Building and Health Department codes and requirements. We’ll suggest options for you to consider, as well as likely requirements and prohibitions. We’ll provide possible layouts, equipment options and estimates based upon these ideas.
Site survey charges are calculated using mileage, travel time and a flat survey fee. No drawings, plans or written estimates will be included. Estimates given during the survey will be verbal, additional charges may be incurred if a written estimate is required. As mentioned previously, the initial survey fee will be refunded if we are hired for Design, Development and/or Construction. Call (517) 699-4585 and ask about our rates.
Many commercial contractors don’t provide free estimates, especially for complex projects, because detailed quotes take significant time, expertise and resources that aren’t free, such as for designs, drawings and site visits; they often charge consultation or preconstruction fees to cover their costs, ensure serious clients and filter out the tire kickers, sometimes applying the fee to the final project if hired, moving towards paid, detailed proposals instead of free vague guesstimates. – Google AI
BID SHOPPING / PEDDLING: The practices of bid shopping and bid peddling are common in the construction industry. Bid shopping is when a general contractor or a potential client gathers bids for a project and divulges the low bid to a preferred contractor (often a friend or relative) in order to get a lower price and award the project to that contractor. Bid peddling is when a contractor initiates bid shopping by a potential client by offering to meet or beat the low bid. Each of these tactics give an unfair advantage to one contractor over the others, they waste the time and devalue the estimating work of all contractors involved and can lower the overall quality of the work. The Lindy Construction Company has been the victim of these unethical practices and will never knowingly participate.
Bid shopping is the controversial practice, primarily in construction, where a general contractor (GC) uses a subcontractor’s (sub’s) low bid as leverage to pressure other subs into offering even lower prices, either to win the main contract or increase their own profit after winning. It undermines fair bidding by creating an unethical, cost-cutting environment that harms subcontractor trust, potentially leading to lower quality work, project delays, and strained relationships. – Google AI
PROCUREMENT:
RATES: Each project is unique and with it’s own scope of work and it’s own local codes and governing agencies. Our Design and Development fees are charged at an hourly rate plus the Engineering and Permit fees. Engineering fees are determined by the Engineer of record and usually based upon an hourly rate. Permit fees are determined by the governing agencies and are usually based on the total project cost. If you decide to retain our services, we will provide you with a detailed proposal for any of the following options:
• Site Survey as described in the Site Survey section of this document, based on the location and calculated using mileage, driving time and a flat rate survey fee.
• Design and/or Development Services as described in the Design and Development sections of this document and at a time and materials rate.
• Partial to Complete Construction and/or Project Management at a time and materials rate and as described in the Construction and Project Management sections of this document.
• Partial to Complete Construction based on a fixed price derived from bid set plans as described in the Construction section of this document.
SITE SECURITY: With everything from copper piping, electrical wire and other building materials to expensive contractor tools and equipment, construction sites are a magnet for thieves. One of the most popular things taken by these upstanding local citizens is dumpster space. It’s not uncommon to arrive for work in the morning to find anything from furniture to appliances and mattresses inside the dumpster and protruding up over the top edge or even on the ground beside it.
One of the first things that we do on a new project is to set up security measures. We’ll replace the existing lock cylinders with construction cores. We can distribute keys as we see fit or place a key lock box at the entrance. Both are great ways of knowing exactly who has access. Once the project is complete we return the original lock cylinders as they were.
On most jobs that we manage we’ll set up our mobile surveillance system which consists of up to eight (8) high definition pant tilt zoom cameras distributed throughout the site, typically with three (3) inside and one (1) outside on the back of the building overlooking the rear entrance and the dumpster area. Signs are placed around the site indicating that security cameras are in use. Cameras can be viewed and controlled remotely via client software for Windows, Android and IOS, you can monitor your project site at any time and from anywhere. The system will do just about everything but make coffee. It provides 24 hour, motion activated, recorded video and can be programmed to notify you in the event of a breach by means of a text message, an email, a phone call or even posting to social media. It can also emit an audible alarm such as a warning telling intruders that the police are on their way.
CCTV:
WEB DEVELOPMENT:
SUMMARY:
We welcome the opportunity to work with you and wish you the best in your endeavor. Please, contact us with any questions.
Services, Rates & Policies, Rev. Aug 2025