David and Judy Vance were shocked last May when a fire destroyed their old D&J Excavating building, located near the Windham/Westbrook line on Route 302.
Though the building was destroyed, business continued as usual. Now, eight months after the fire, a new building has been erected on the same spot, home to the local excavating business that has been operating in Windham since the 1950s.
The Vances are waiting to move into the new steel-walled D&J headquarters as Brown Construction Inc. of Portland finishes construction.
“We’re very happy,” Judy Vance said. “We just want to get the new roof on so we can use it.”
On May 1, Judy watched as flames consumed the old building and caused the roof to collapse burying the equipment and office inside. She phoned her husband in Mars Hill, where he was performing electrical work at a hunting camp, to tell him. They both couldn’t believe what had happened.
It was an emotional experience, Judy said, to watch as the rubble of the old building was later cleared away.
Since the fire, her husband David has had to focus on both the reconstruction and his ongoing excavating work.
Last fall, David spent a month removing the old foundation and doing groundwork for the building’s foundation. Though winter weather sometimes slowed progress, Brown Construction has been working to erect the new headquarters which will be slightly bigger than the previous structure, Judy said.
For nearly 50 years, D&J Excavating has served Windham and neighboring communities. Donald Vance, who started D&J with his wife Joanne, said that, in the beginning, there were few excavating companies in the area. And D&J was the only one that knew how to dig in “wet dirt without getting stuck,” he said.
Like his successors David and Judy, Donald performed the excavating labor while wife Joanne kept the books. Donald found success both through excavating work and residential construction projects. However, he often had to work long hours, and sometimes holidays, to keep up the business. Donald said he is “very proud” of his son and what David has done.
“He’s doing great,” Donald said. “He’s working too hard and doing the same thing I always did.”
Once the building is complete, Signature Kitchens, owned by Tim and Cindy Blackie, will rejoin D&J Excavating in the new building. They’ve been running their kitchen design and installation business out of their home since the fire.
“I’m still selling, but i’m anxious to get back in and get the foot traffic,” Tim Blackie said.
Though the new building may not be the same as the old one where Judy once watched David build “street rods” in high school, the couple is glad to have it rebuilt in the same location.
newD&J.jpg: Brown Construction Inc., of Portland, has been working with David and Judy Vance to rebuild the headquarters of D&J Excavating in the same spot where the old building burned.Send questions/comments to the editors.
