A century is a long time, but even more so to be in business. That's how long Bennett Contracting has been in operation, but it wasn't always about fixing up homes. Jon Dougherty has more in this week's Capital Region Business Beat.
ALBANY, N.Y. -- In 1915, Dan Bennett worked at a rail yard.
"My grandfather was a steam fitter on the railroad and he learned how to work with pipes," Bennett's grandson Greg Jackson said.
Bennett used that experience to open his own business in Delmar to give people comforts some couldn't live without today.
"In 1915, the idea of having indoor plumbing and central heating were both new products and new concepts and it was really a boom industry," Jackson said.
Then Bennett the Plumber continued to grow and had to adjust to changing times. It went from just a plumbing business, to an insulation company in the 1970s. In 1984, Jackson and Paul Gutman took over what's now known as Bennett Contracting, the Capital Region's oldest full-service home remodeling company.
To celebrate its 100th anniversary, Bennett Contracting wanted to do something special for the Capital Region. It chose a project that the whole community can benefit from.
"We wanted to help a lot of people. We were looking for a good program, somewhere we could get volunteers on a Saturday and we could knock something down and build something new because that's what our people like to do," said Jackson.
Recently, Bennett Contracting employees built a shed and grape arbor at the Capital Roots garden in Lincoln Park where more than 52 families grow their own food.
Bennett hopes to continue building strong roots with the community that it's called home for a century.
"As long as people keep working and living in buildings, they're going to need us because the buildings need to be maintained."
Jackson hopes that's for hundred more years.
If you know a business that could be featured on the Capital Region Business Beat, submit an email to Jon.Dougherty@twcnews.com and for more business news follow Jon on Twitter: @JonDTWCNews.