Photo courtesy of Ideal Contracting
Ideal Contracting’s Jason Hargrove Transit Center project was named ENR Midwest’s 2025 Best Airport/Transit Project and was a finalist for Project of the Year.
Ideal Contracting has been named ENR Midwest’s 2026 Contractor of the Year following another year of significant growth, major project awards and a commitment to community investment that continues to positively impact Southwest Detroit.
The Midwest Contractor of the Year is selected by a panel of ENR judges based on success in the region in terms of growth and revenue, as well as innovation, creativity and commitment to giving back to their community.
Detroit-based Ideal posted revenue of $565.5 million in 2025, up from $489.7 million in 2024, continuing a steady upward trajectory. Founded in 1998 by entrepreneur Frank Venegas, Ideal Contracting has grown from a small operation of eight employees to a nationally recognized contractor with more than 170 full-time employees and more than 400 skilled professionals supporting projects nationwide.
Among the company’s recent publicly recognized projects are structural and miscellaneous steelwork for the University of Michigan Innovation Center, Henry Ford Health’s Destination Grand development and the JW Marriott Detroit Water Square Hotel. Ideal Contracting’s construction group has also played a leading role in projects such as the Jason Hargrove Transit Center and the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory, both of which earned high honors from ENR Midwest in its Best Projects 2024 competition.
As the Midwest Contractor of the Year, Ideal will be recognized in the July 6 print edition of ENR Midwest, which will also feature the regional Top Contractor Rankings, highlighting companies doing business and earning revenue in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
If you’re a contractor or other construction professional with an interesting project you’d like featured, like the one Ideal did in 2024, you have until June 30 to submit a project to the ENR Midwest Best Projects 2026 competition. which is dedicated to recognizing the best construction projects and companies that designed and built them. Projects compete in specialized market categories, with awards for sustainability and safety as well.
