AGC OF CALIFORNIA PRESIDENT MIKE BLACH


Blach Construction is currently working on one of the Bay Area’s largest transit-oriented developments, the Gateway at Millbrae Station (depicted in this rendering).


AGC Involvement and Vision Mike Blach’s first exposure to


AGC in fact was through his dad, who occasionally brought him to Santa Clara District events as a teenager. During three decades of leadership at Blach Construction he has continued to stay involved in the association, serving on the Santa Clara District Board and State Board for many years, as Building Division Chair, and in a host of other capacities. A few years ago, at the invitation


of longtime friend and mentor, AGC Past President Jon Ball, Blach agreed to join the officers’ corps, working his way up the leadership ranks to serve as President in 2020. He sees it as a unique opportunity to help reshape the narrative and public perception about the integral role the construction industry plays in the state’s economy and the built environment. “One of my biggest priorities is


really working hard to continue to break down some of the stereotypes about construction and who we are,” he said. “We are a very large, sophis- ticated, multi-billion-dollar industry, one that employs millions of people in our state. We want to make California a better place to do business.” Blach added, “A lot of legislation


that is coming through Sacramento now lacks any sensitivity or thought about how it affects businesses. We want to focus on building relationships with our legislators so we are not seen as the opposition or the adversary but


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as a partner who can help them write laws that are mutually beneficial.” A key focus within AGC this year


will be elevating its delivery of key services, whether legal, legislative, regulatory, business-related or other services that contribute to the success


Mike Blach and team supporting the toy drive at Sacred Heart Community Service last December.


Community Service is Core to Blach


One thing that


has brought Blach Construction employees together through the years is a shared commitment to giving back to the community – a core value that “is in the company’s DNA,” according to Mike Blach. It’s a legacy he has carried on from his dad through his own extensive industry


and community involvement, which includes board or leadership positions with KQED, Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, the Rotary Club of San Jose and many others. Mike Blach has also received myriad honors for philanthropy and business leadership throughout his career. It was not surprising, then, that when they were polled recently an


overwhelming majority of Blach employees said they wanted to commemorate the firm’s Golden Anniversary year with a series of ambitious community service projects. Blach selected Sacred Heart Community Service, an organization that provides food, clothing, housing, employment assistance and other services to the greater San Jose community, for a yearlong campaign of fundraising and hands-on volunteering. “It was amazing and very gratifying to see everybody that unified, and it’s


something that would have made my dad very happy,” Blach said. “I’m proud we are continuing to build upon his legacy.”


Associated General Contractors of California 11


and vitality of member companies that span a broad cross-section of the construction industry, Blach said. “Everybody wants to be part of an organization that makes them better,”


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