Company named Industry of The Year

In its 50th year, UL Coleman Companies is receiving recognition for a half-century of commitment to northwest Louisiana.

The Shreveport company, which provides commercial real estate services, management of multifamily communities and commercial properties, and development and construction services, has been named the J. Pat Beaird Memorial Industry of the Year by the Greater Shreveport Chamber. The award will be given at a luncheon presented by Regions on Thursday, August 29, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at Sam’s Town Hotel & Casino.

The keynote speaker will be Keni Thomas. As an Army Ranger, Thomas fought in the Battle of Mogadishu, which was depicted in the book and movie “Black Hawk Down.”

“We’re excited to receive the recognition of this distinguished award,” said Cole Guthrie, vice president of development and construction for UL Coleman Companies. “We have been a local company for the past 50 years and have continued to reinvest in this community. We have a lot of pride in what we do as professionals in the real estate market, and, obviously, getting this recognition makes it that much better on our 50th anniversary.”

The Industry of the Year Award bears the name of J. Pat Beaird. According to the Chamber, Beaird’s lifetime of community service helped make northwest Louisiana a better place to live and work.

The Chamber says Beaird traveled throughout the United States and Latin America promoting the Shreveport area. UL Coleman shares many of Beaird’s traits.

“Our approach is the Boy Scout approach,” Guthrie said. “We want to leave our community better than we found it. It’s similar to our Fern Crossing project. A lot of people would probably turn away from something like that, but we hit it head on. Our approach is to take older properties, or even newer properties, and leave them in better condition than we found them. I think that improves our overall Sport-Bossier market.”

Fern Crossing is an apartment complex that had deteriorated until UL Coleman came in and essentially started from scratch.

“We saw an opportunity,” Guthrie said.

“I think a lot of people may be more closed-minded. We’re very optimistic, and opportunistic as well, and probably look at things through a different lens than most. We’re long-term holders and developers. We look at (a project) as ‘How is it going to look in the next 30-40 years?’ versus trying to sell it within the next five years. Our approach is a little different, and that’s because we are so invested in this community.”

To learn more about the J. Pat Beaird Memorial Industry of the Year Award Luncheon, you may visit shreveportchamber.org.