Suitable for Framing
by Kimberley Wray
Alan Fletcher elevates home building to an art form.
Alan Fletcher built his first house while working for his father at the age of 21. A year later he built another, and his father, a second-generation builder himself, clearly recognized natural talent when he saw it. Knowing that his son had found his calling, he encouraged him to start his own business.
Twenty-five years later, Alan Fletcher Construction, Inc., is known as one of the area’s premiere builders. And while the reputation for excellence has consistently grown, and the projects have become more sophisticated and complex as the years passed, two things have remained constant: Alan Fletcher’s feeling that he is doing exactly what he was meant to do, “pre-destined” you might say, and his love of the work. In fact, on any given day, the company founder can still be found on the jobsite, taking in every aspect of a home, from the first footings to every single nail that is driven.
“Alan is extremely dedicated to his projects,” relates Steve Reeder, a Winston-Salem resident, who along with his wife, Michelle, attended several open houses, and interviewed a number of builders before engaging Alan Fletcher Construction to make their vision for a spacious contemporary home with rustic flair in Pfafftown a reality last year.
“His reputation and work are exceptional,” says Dave Montgomery, who decided to build in Bermuda Run West three years ago. “Having made the decision to build a new home, we quickly chose Alan Fletcher as our contractor,” Montgomery says. “The process was easy once we talked to a few people who had had homes built by him.”
A retired engineer from R.J. Reynolds, Montgomery made it a point to visit the project everyday to assess the work. “Most builders would dread seeing an engineer come by each day,” says Fletcher with a laugh, “but it got to the point where we all really looked forward to Dave’s visit.” “Today,” says Montgomery, “my wife and I remain extremely pleased with the house and we consider Alan to be a good friend.”
From the start, Reeder says he and his wife were particularly impressed by Fletcher’s dedication to their project. “No matter when we came out to see how the house was progressing during the building process, Alan was always there,” Reeder relates. “He was totally focused on giving us the best product possible, and we were thrilled with the amount of time and effort that he put into making sure we got what we wanted.”
Indeed, according to Reeder, it was clear that Fletcher was unerring in his conviction that everything be as close to perfect as possible. “It’s clear to us that he hires the best people that he can find, and that he has exceptional relationships with the sub-contractors he works with,” Reeder says. “They understand what he wants, and they know what he expects. And, they know that if they don’t do what he wants, they’ll be coming back out to do it again.”
Dr. John Roland and his wife Louise also interviewed others before deciding to work with Alan Fletcher on a complete kitchen renovation last year. One remodeler estimated the work would take four months, yet another six. “In that length of time, you can come close to building a whole house,” Fletcher says, not to mention that it’s a long time for anyone to live without their kitchen. His firm completed the project in barely four weeks, while exceeding the couple’s expectations on every level. “There was someone out here every single day and they really worked,” remembers Louise Roland. “Nobody moped or goofed off; they just got it done.”
“When you work with Alan, things are very organized, like a well-oiled machine,” describes another customer, whose new, Alan Fletcher-built, ‘dream home’ will be completed early this spring. “We can’t say enough good about him, and everybody that I run into that he has built a house for, even if it was five years ago, has nothing but good to say about him.”
That’s a good thing, because as nearly everyone will tell you, Fletcher isn’t terribly fond of talking about himself. “He’s very approachable, but he’s not a talker,” says Deb Alty, who moved to the area from Texas two-and-a-half-years ago when her husband was offered a position as associate vice president for facilities at Wake Forest. “However, when Alan does say something, his word is his bond. When we started the house, he gave us a date of when it was going to be ready and he delivered it two days early. We’ve built houses before, and that’s just unheard of. But what really impressed me was the way he listened to us. We’ve lived all over the world, and we came to him with a lot of ideas from other places, and designs he had not encountered before. He’d ask questions and make certain that we had considered all the options, and then he would make it happen.” As an event planner, Alty herself is known for her formidable organizational skills. “I’m a very list-oriented, organized person, and Alan is very much that way as well. I loved coming on the job to watch the progress, especially when the house was in the framing stage, because I could read the notes that Alan would write on the 2×4’s. There were very specific lists and messages for the different sub-contractors each day about whatever needed to be done, and by when.”
“Alan is a perfectionist and extremely thorough,” comments George Valouras, who purchased a spec home on Stratford Road that while brand new, fits so well into the environs it appears to have been part of the neighborhood for years. “I know all of his sub-contractors because we made a few changes in the home after we purchased, and they are all very, very competent. From a design point of view, from materials to functionality and workmanship, they all did an excellent and outstanding job. Everything about the house is first-class.”
“I gave him a plaque when our house was finished,” Alty says. Fitting for a man of few words, it read simply: “You made our dream home come true.”
