KBE Building Corp. Renovates Third Restaurant Depot in Rhode Island

CRANSTON, R.I. — KBE Building Corporation has started renovations for its third Restaurant Depot project — this one in Cranston, Rhode Island. KBE will serve as general contractor for the project, which comprises the renovation of an existing 50,000-square-foot building, plus the addition of a 10,000-square-foot enclosed area and a 16,000-square-foot covered parking area. Work will include paving, site grading and storm drainage modifications.    

“It's always a pleasure to renovate Restaurant Depot stores,” said KBE President and CEO Mike Kolakowski, who bought the firm with Eric Brown and Simon Etzel in 2007. “KBE has also built restaurants and grocery stores throughout the Northeast, and our Restaurant Depot projects bring that work full circle.”

KBE and Restaurant Depot share a commitment to safety: KBE has won Safety Training and Evaluation Process Awards of Achievement every year since 1995 and recently signed a safety partnership with OSHA. Restaurant Depot guarantees product integrity and freshness at stores and during transport.  

In addition to the Cranston Restaurant Depot, KBE recently won bids for the Downtown D.C. Harris Teeter and the Tennessee Naval Commissary and Exchange. “During the past decade, education and senior living have emerged as our top markets,” continued Kolakowski.   “But we"re still going strong with retail and food industry-related projects.”

Building isn"t the only way KBE helps feed the community. As part of its charitable giving program, “50 Ways to Make a Difference,” KBE recently donated $2,000 to Hands On Hartford, an organization that provides meals to hungry children and seniors in Hartford, Connecticut. Since 2009, KBE staff members have donated more than $1.2 million and 5,000 volunteer hours to charitable organizations in Connecticut and Maryland.

Renovations to the Cranston, Rhode Island and Chicopee, Massachusetts Restaurant Depots are scheduled for completion by spring 2015 and summer 2014, respectively. KBE completed renovations at the Hartford, Connecticut Restaurant Depot in May 2013.