CRST 2016
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Celebrating<br />
the New<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> Center
In the fast lane<br />
We’re proud to be running side-by-side with <strong>CRST</strong> to<br />
bring new vitality to downtown Cedar Rapids. All of us<br />
at Bankers Trust send our congratulations to <strong>CRST</strong> for<br />
helping transport our community into the future. And<br />
we look forward to passing you in the halls.<br />
Bankers Trust is excited to bring expanded services<br />
and new convenience to our loyal customers.<br />
• Full-service 1st floor branch<br />
• Street-level customer parking<br />
• Drive-thru teller with ATM<br />
Member FDIC<br />
221 Third Avenue SE 319-896-7777<br />
400 Blairs Ferry Road NE 319-221-1230<br />
BankersTrust.com<br />
2 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
A letter from Dyan and John Smith:<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> CENTER<br />
201 FIRST STREET SE<br />
CEDAR RAPIDS, IA 52401<br />
WWW.<strong>CRST</strong>.COM<br />
SEPTEMBER <strong>2016</strong><br />
AN ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT OF THE<br />
CORRIDOR BUSINESS JOURNAL<br />
WRITER: JIM OFFNER<br />
PHOTOGRAPHER: RYAN COMPANIES<br />
DESIGNER: BECKY LYONS<br />
MEDIA CONSULTANT: KELLY MEYER<br />
As we celebrate the grand opening of <strong>CRST</strong> International’s<br />
new headquarters in downtown Cedar Rapids, we reflect back<br />
more than 60 years to <strong>CRST</strong>’s humble beginnings and our family<br />
founders’ first headquarters—a $125 chicken coop.<br />
It is with great gratitude and tremendous respect that we<br />
dedicate this new, beautiful building to <strong>CRST</strong>’s founders and<br />
John’s parents, Herald and Miriam Smith, for their extraordinary<br />
vision to grow <strong>CRST</strong> into one of the nation’s largest trucking<br />
companies and to foster Cedar Rapids’ growth and vitality along<br />
the way.<br />
Having been born and raised in Cedar Rapids, and having<br />
raised our three children here, we are committed to the economic<br />
prosperity of our community and hope our investment in this<br />
new, $37 million building will inspire additional new growth and<br />
development in our downtown.<br />
We believe that a strong, vibrant downtown is important to<br />
those who already live here, but it is also extremely important for<br />
attracting a strong, talented workforce. As we’ve seen in other<br />
areas around the country, younger professionals desire to live<br />
and work in a cosmopolitan downtown—one that is thriving with<br />
great restaurants, entertainment and the arts—which is another<br />
significant passion of ours that we are pleased to continue to<br />
support.<br />
As <strong>CRST</strong> continues to achieve record growth under the direction<br />
of <strong>CRST</strong> International President and CEO Dave Rusch and his<br />
leadership team, the grand opening of our headquarters could not<br />
have come at a better time to accommodate our growing team of<br />
employees.<br />
We thank all the employees of <strong>CRST</strong>—the drivers, mechanics,<br />
office personnel, supervisors and leadership team—whose<br />
integrity, ingenuity and can-do spirit have made <strong>CRST</strong> International<br />
an industry leader in growth and profitability. Our family is forever<br />
grateful to these dedicated men and women, whom we are proud<br />
to call the best in transportation.<br />
We are also proud to welcome Bankers Trust, our anchor tenant<br />
occupying the top two floors of the building and providing a<br />
street-level full-service branch, as well as tenants RSM and Holmes<br />
Murphy, to their new homes in our new building.<br />
Putting together the financial pieces and partnerships to make<br />
this building a reality involved many business, community and civic<br />
leaders. We extend our heartfelt thanks to officials from the City<br />
of Cedar Rapids and the State of Iowa for their assistance along<br />
the way. And we cannot thank enough OPN Architects and Ryan<br />
Companies for building us this striking statement of a building that<br />
has forever changed the skyline of downtown Cedar Rapids.<br />
We are excited to celebrate another significant milestone for<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> and our family. We are proud to call Cedar Rapids our home<br />
and the home of the headquarters for <strong>CRST</strong> International.<br />
Sincerely,<br />
John and Dyan Smith<br />
www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 3
FAMILY HEIRLOOM:<br />
Smiths Get Set to Open <strong>CRST</strong>’s New Tower<br />
John and Dyan Smith are about to christen their newest family heirloom – the<br />
$37 million, 11-story corporate home of <strong>CRST</strong> International Inc. – in downtown<br />
Cedar Rapids.<br />
“We decided this would be an opportune time to develop a downtown<br />
building that <strong>CRST</strong> and the city would be proud of,” said John, 67, chairman<br />
and son of Herald and Miriam Smith, who started Cedar Rapids Steel<br />
Transportation in 1955 out of a refurbished chicken coop they bought for $125.<br />
“Smitty,” as Herald was called, convinced his customers he could save them<br />
money by contracting with owner/operators who were hauling livestock to<br />
Chicago to return to the Cedar Rapids area with loads of steel instead of<br />
empty trucks, according to the company website.<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> ultimately evolved from a trucking firm into a major transportation/<br />
logistics firm.<br />
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6<br />
4 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
CONGRATS<br />
We are proud to<br />
assist you in adding<br />
to the Cedar Rapids<br />
skyline!<br />
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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4<br />
Herald Smith died in July 2015, but he lived long enough to see the new tower<br />
rise, John said.<br />
“His dad was really pleased; he was very much looking forward to seeing this<br />
building completed,” said Dyan, 66, who also serves on the company’s board.<br />
The Cedar Rapids-headquartered company, which has spread to locations in<br />
Alabama, Indiana, California, Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Texas and<br />
Oklahoma, has 5,500 employees, as well as over 2,400 owner/operators, for a<br />
total of 7,900 stakeholders in <strong>CRST</strong>, John said.<br />
The company pondered expansion of its existing campus on the southwest<br />
side of Cedar Rapids, as well as sites south of town, near the airport. Based on<br />
studies, the downtown site made the most sense.<br />
In 2012, the decision was made to build downtown, John said.<br />
CONTINUED ON PAGE 10<br />
6 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
ROAD<br />
TO<br />
SUCCESS<br />
Congratulations on constructing a beautiful building<br />
for <strong>CRST</strong> headquarters and other area businesses to<br />
thrive in.<br />
We commend you on driving our community, state and nation in<br />
Transportation Solutions and Comprehensive Logistics. We are proud<br />
to sit along side you on your journey.<br />
truenorthcompanies.com
The Smith family tasked OPN<br />
with creating a “statement<br />
building” that would dramatically<br />
change the Cedar Rapids skyline.<br />
The original renderings are<br />
shown here.<br />
Flood wall design looking north.<br />
Looking west during the day.<br />
Looking north at night.<br />
8 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
Congratulations<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> Center<br />
101 T&K Drive, Ely<br />
319-848-4191 800-383-7663<br />
www.tkroofing.com
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6<br />
The couple was involved in every phase of the process.<br />
“When the opportunity came to build downtown, I knew we wanted<br />
to build something that was contemporary and would appeal to the<br />
people of Cedar Rapids,” Dyan said.<br />
Dyan worked closely with Cedar Rapids-based project designer OPN<br />
Architects.<br />
“That’s why we have the modern glass facing the river with the view,<br />
to be seen by people coming into downtown, and the brick facing<br />
downtown, as a nod to what was more traditional,” Dyan said.<br />
The new project makes a statement about the success <strong>CRST</strong> has<br />
enjoyed over the years, which is an image they believe is critical to<br />
attracting new, young talent into the industry and community, John said.<br />
CONTINUED ON PAGE 12<br />
10 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
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U.S. Bank is proud to welcome <strong>CRST</strong> to their new downtown<br />
Cedar Rapids headquarters.<br />
Visit one of our convenient area branch locations today!<br />
Equal Housing Lender. Member FDIC. ©<strong>2016</strong> U.S. Bank 4/16<br />
www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 11
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10<br />
When the opportunity came to<br />
build downtown, I knew we wanted<br />
to build something that was<br />
contemporary and would appeal to<br />
the people of Cedar Rapids.<br />
— Dyan Smith<br />
Resourceful.<br />
Responsive | Reliable<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> does anticipate growing<br />
in its new home. The firm will<br />
occupy two floors of the new<br />
building, with a third floor<br />
remaining for future expansion,<br />
Dyan said.<br />
A family-owned business like<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> can invest in its future with<br />
nimbleness that perhaps a larger<br />
corporate entity might not have,<br />
John said.<br />
“In terms of family business, I<br />
think a family can make quicker<br />
decisions for the long term and<br />
not have to worry about quarterly<br />
earnings like public companies<br />
do,” he said. “There are<br />
advantages to being private, and<br />
we intend to stay private.”<br />
Indeed, family is key to <strong>CRST</strong>’s<br />
success, John said.<br />
“Although the family is not<br />
involved in running the day-today<br />
business, we see our job<br />
as ensuring that the vision and<br />
principles that <strong>CRST</strong> was founded<br />
upon by my father are carried out<br />
in the future,” he said.<br />
John credited a “professional<br />
management” team led by<br />
President and CEO David Rusch<br />
for having kept the company on<br />
course.<br />
“It’s key that the next<br />
generation keeps active and<br />
growing,” John said. n<br />
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12 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
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CONGRATULATIONS,<br />
<strong>CRST</strong>!
New <strong>CRST</strong> Center Evolves<br />
as ‘Collaborative’ Effort<br />
Structures like the new <strong>CRST</strong> Center don’t just go<br />
up; they evolve, according to those who designed<br />
and built the gleaming new $37 million, 11-story<br />
waterfront tower in downtown Cedar Rapids.<br />
Indeed, the original thinking didn’t involve a<br />
new building at all, according to Marc Gullickson,<br />
CEO/Midwest for Ryan Companies, the project’s<br />
general contractor.<br />
Company Chairman John Smith and his wife,<br />
Dyan, who also serves on the board, were initially<br />
interested in renovating and expanding the<br />
company’s longtime headquarters on the southwest<br />
side of town, Gullickson said.<br />
“The project evolved over time to become a new<br />
building,” he said. “Suburban and urban locations<br />
were considered, but the Smiths were convinced<br />
that if they were going to build new, they should<br />
build downtown and be part of the post-flood<br />
revitalization effort for the city.”<br />
At that point, Ryan Companies took on more than<br />
a contractor’s role, applying its development skills<br />
to support such efforts as finding a site, developing<br />
a project pro forma, negotiating issues with the city<br />
and pursuing tax credits, Gullickson said.<br />
“It has been great fun,” he said.<br />
Cedar Rapids-based OPN Architects got the call<br />
to design the building.<br />
“When you have a company like <strong>CRST</strong> and<br />
members of this community like John and Dyan<br />
Smith who are making this kind of commitment to<br />
this downtown and community, it’s very rewarding to<br />
be associated with it,” said Dan Thies, CEO of OPN.<br />
The excitement rose as the building concept took<br />
shape, Thies said.<br />
“I think in our world, the design process is always<br />
very exciting and every project presents a new<br />
CONTINUED ON PAGE 16<br />
14 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
<strong>CRST</strong>’s new employee break room located on the fifth floor of <strong>CRST</strong> Center.<br />
Amperage congratulates<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> International and the Smith Family<br />
on your new headquarters<br />
You’ve been moving the community forward for over 60 years—building neighborhoods,<br />
underwriting the arts, supporting local needs and fostering our economy.<br />
Thank you for advancing Cedar Rapids downtown development.<br />
We’re proud to call <strong>CRST</strong> International our long-standing client<br />
and now, our neighbor.<br />
AMPERAGEmarketing.com<br />
CEDAR FALLS | CEDAR RAPIDS | DES MOINES | DUBUQUE | QUAD CITIES<br />
www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 15
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14<br />
set of elements for us to work on and solve in a<br />
creative manner,” he said.<br />
It’s a collaborative process, Thies noted.<br />
Thies also noted that the Smiths were personally<br />
involved in all design meetings.<br />
“Very hands on, and certainly they were interested<br />
in the <strong>CRST</strong> leadership understanding the building<br />
and being excited about what will become home to<br />
their administrative group,” Thies said.<br />
The Smiths vetted physical models, 3-D analyses<br />
and even materials going into the project, Thies<br />
said.<br />
Dyan Smith, who acknowledged a passion for<br />
building design, said she had a clear vision for the<br />
final project.<br />
“Since it’s on the river, I wanted it to have<br />
sweeping views of the river,” she said.<br />
That would be fitting, since the city has had an<br />
intimate relationship with the Cedar River since its<br />
founding, she said.<br />
“I wanted lots of windows; I wanted the interior<br />
to be as open as possible so each tenant coming in<br />
could decide if they wanted open space or smaller<br />
spaces or offices,” she said.<br />
The new building has been a hive of activity<br />
throughout the building process, Gullickson said.<br />
“On a given day, there could be 200 people<br />
on-site working,” he said, noting that about 25<br />
subcontractors were involved.<br />
Coordinating all that activity required “having a<br />
good quarterback,” Gullickson noted.<br />
“That is our job: Having a design partner that<br />
is committed to working with us is essential, and<br />
OPN has been terrific,” he said. “It is our job to<br />
manage the schedule and coordinate the effort.”<br />
That includes any unforeseen obstacles,<br />
Gullickson said.<br />
“Any job – and this project is certainly no<br />
exception – will have hiccups,” he said. “Knowing<br />
how to deal with the hiccups is essential. Everyone<br />
has to work together to make a project like this<br />
work.” n<br />
It’s always a pleasure<br />
to recognize the<br />
achievement of<br />
our clients.<br />
Proud to partner with<br />
you on your new building.<br />
Congratulations on the completion of the new <strong>CRST</strong><br />
Center. RSM looks forward to serving clients from this<br />
new location beginning October 24, <strong>2016</strong>.<br />
rsm us.com<br />
1711 Hawkeye Dr | Hiawatha<br />
319.743.9891 | www.hawkeye-electric.com<br />
Visit rsmus.com/aboutus for more information regarding RSM US LLP and RSM International.<br />
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16 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
This fourth-floor office has views to the east.<br />
Proud to do the steel erection<br />
for the <strong>CRST</strong> project.<br />
Cedar Valley Steel is a certified AISC steel erector. Our experience<br />
is in all types of structural steel erection including AESS,<br />
catwalk systems, entrance canopies, metal decking, mezzanine<br />
framing, miscellaneous steel, ornamental steel, pre-engineered<br />
metal building, skywalk bridges, structural & miscellaneous steel<br />
demo, reinforcing, shear stud welding, precast erection, heavy<br />
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280 50th Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids<br />
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www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 17
TRUCKING TO PROSPERITY:<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> Could Ignite Other Projects<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> International Inc.’s new 11-story tower<br />
is more than the newest jewel adorning<br />
downtown Cedar Rapids, according to economic<br />
development leaders.<br />
They see the $37 million office complex as<br />
potentially being a key that could unlock untold<br />
prosperity in the heart of the city’s business district.<br />
“This building is one of many new projects<br />
that showcase the progress and growth in Cedar<br />
Rapids and our core district areas,” said Brian<br />
Crowe, economic development strategist with the<br />
Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance.<br />
The new tower also symbolizes <strong>CRST</strong>’s evolution as<br />
one of the area’s strongest enterprises, Crowe said.<br />
“Since 1955, <strong>CRST</strong> has evolved from a trucking<br />
firm to one of the nation’s leading providers<br />
of transportation solutions, and this skylinetransforming<br />
tower in downtown Cedar Rapids<br />
shows their pride and confidence in locating their<br />
headquarters here,” he said.<br />
Confidence is crucial to growth, Crowe noted.<br />
“By building and maintaining their headquarters<br />
here in Cedar Rapids, <strong>CRST</strong> is showing their<br />
confidence as one of the largest privately owned<br />
transportation companies in the U.S., but also<br />
their confidence in Cedar Rapids,” he said.<br />
Crowe noted that the tower also will serve as fertile<br />
ground for other local companies it will house.<br />
“Obviously, we are all excited to see the<br />
building completed, but it is extremely exciting<br />
to know that three other major local tenants –<br />
Bankers Trust, RSM International and Holmes<br />
Murphy – will take occupancy in the new building<br />
as well,” he said.<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> has just cast a strong vote of faith in Cedar<br />
Rapids and the Creative Corridor, Crowe said.<br />
CONTINUED ON PAGE 20<br />
WELCOME TO THE<br />
SKYLINE<br />
& CONGRATULATIONS<br />
<strong>CRST</strong><br />
VISION &<br />
COMMITMENT<br />
Thank You<br />
John & Dyan Smith and Family<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> International<br />
18 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
The fourth-floor boardroom, which overlooks the Cedar River, features a stretched fabric ceiling with LED lighting above<br />
the conference table.<br />
CONGRATULATIONS<br />
ON YOUR NEW BUILDING<br />
Industrial - Commercial - Utility<br />
Residential - Agricultural<br />
319-393-6406<br />
WWW.PRICEELECTRIC.US<br />
www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 19
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 18<br />
“The <strong>CRST</strong> Center and the many other new<br />
projects underway in Cedar Rapids will continue to<br />
add vibrancy and amenities while adding jobs and<br />
capital investment to our city,” he said.<br />
Dan Thies, CEO of Cedar Rapids-based OPN<br />
Architects, which designed the riverfront tower,<br />
noted that the building is the first privately<br />
developed office building in downtown since the<br />
Great America Building, which came online in the<br />
late 1990s.<br />
“When a project like this comes along, I think<br />
it’s a significant statement about the strength<br />
and health and vibrancy of our community, the<br />
economic stability of our community,” Thies said.<br />
“It’s a heck of a statement for an important private<br />
company to step forward and say they’re making<br />
a commitment to downtown.”<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> Chairman John Smith said development<br />
could ignite other projects.<br />
“You can never exactly know what projects are<br />
going to spur growth, but all I can tell you is that<br />
after we announced we were coming downtown,<br />
you just keep hearing of new projects and that the<br />
face of downtown is going to continue to change<br />
in the next five years, and we’re just part of that,”<br />
Smith said.<br />
It could be the start of something big<br />
downtown, Smith said.<br />
“We’re not bringing our whole operations<br />
downtown, but we’re bringing our corporate<br />
headquarters downtown, and I think it spurs<br />
people to think about it,” he said.<br />
Opening the new headquarters downtown is<br />
good for business across the Creative Corridor,<br />
Smith said.<br />
“Indirectly, I think the better Cedar Rapids does,<br />
the better the Corridor does,” he said. “The<br />
way Cedar Rapids is going to grow is to get our<br />
downtown really sold and get people down there.<br />
It’s a long-term project that never stops.” n<br />
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20 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
Artwork accents the walls throughout the fourth and fifth floors of the <strong>CRST</strong> Center.<br />
Congratulations<br />
<strong>CRST</strong> on your new headquarters<br />
CONSTRUCTION CO. INC.<br />
Let Dave Schmitt Construction be your worry-free contractor<br />
250 50th Ave. SW Cedar Rapids, IA 52404 (319) 365-8669 daveschmittconstruction.com<br />
www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 21
The U-shaped outdoor terrace wraps around the fourth floor.<br />
22 www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com
The new <strong>CRST</strong> Center is located at 201 First St. SE, Cedar Rapids.<br />
www.<strong>CRST</strong>.com 23
For sixty years, we have been proud to<br />
call <strong>CRST</strong> our partner and friend.<br />
Congratulations on achieving an extraordinary vision.<br />
115 3rd Street SE, Suite 1200 | Cedar Rapids, IA 52401 | 319.366.7641<br />
1150 5th Street, Suite 170 | Coralville, IA 52241 | 319.354.1019<br />
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