Landing at Red Hill at dusk: a two-storey fritted glass entry pavilion glowing from within at the corner of an office campus, lit concrete benches and bollards along the drive, and a matching pavilion across the courtyard

Your Vision Sets Our Foundation

Builders Who Construct Experiences

Guided by our Return on Experience (ROE), powered by our Estimate-Based Approach™.

Led by a transparent framework for cost and schedule, we’re built to deliver spaces that inspire.

Hatch Gatherings at Fox Point Farms in North County San Diego at dusk: a timber pergola strung with lights over a glass-walled events hall, a long fire pit burning before it behind a stone wall, and the moon above
Our goal is to see around corners, solving problems before they appear.

John Dempsey
Founder and CEO

For so many clients, the focus is on costs and scheduling, and while we have that in spades, the Dempsey Difference is in the details. We make it our mission to help you see beyond the build. To the proactive planning of preconstruction. To the nitty gritty of breaking ground. To all the intricacies that make a world-class commercial build, and the architects, developers, trade partners, and occupants who make your space real.

A pencil perspective sketch of a terrace: tables, chairs, and bar stools on a paved deck beside a flat-roofed glazed pavilion with a cantilevered canopy, a planted bed along one side, and a second pavilion up a stair behind

We’re a San Diego-based company spending every day perfecting our general contracting services for commercial property owners and tenants.

Markets

Awards

  • PCBC Golden Nugget Awards for Fox Point Farms: Best Community Land Plan, Best Community Amenity, and Mixed Use Community of the Year, 2026
  • Inc. 5000, 2025
  • President’s Circle Risk Control Excellence Award, 2021 to 2024
  • San Diego Business Journal Best Places to Work, 2018 to 2024
  • Best Places to Work SoCal, 2022 to 2024
  • Docomomo Modernism in America Commercial Design Award of Excellence, Mariners Medical Arts Building, 2024
  • Sacramento Business Journal Best Real Estate Project of the Year, Lund Construction Headquarters, 2024
  • Imperial Valley’s Project of the Year, Calexico Gateway Center, 2024
  • Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year, Small Business, 2022

From Groundbreaking To Ribbon Cutting

A pencil perspective sketch of a courtyard: two-storey buildings with balconies and tall windows along one side, a bed of cacti and agaves behind a low wall, and a long timber bench running toward a building across the paving

When the time comes to break ground on your project, we’ve worked out every detail to ensure your build is on track for on-schedule completion.

The Team You Can Trust

Our clients trust us to keep our eyes on their investment. Between project management, communication, financial accounting, reporting, logistics, safety management, on-site supervision, trade partner coordination, closeout, and beyond, there’s no cutting corners, no lapses in communication, and no making excuses.

  • Project Management
  • Submittals
  • Quality Assurance & Quality Control
  • Schedules
  • RFIS (Requests for Information)
  • Project Closeout
  • Weekly OAC Meetings

Seeing Around Corners

Three people at a table reviewing a set of construction drawings, one pointing at a detail

A gap in the plan becomes a gap on site. We would rather find it on paper.

So we estimate at every design stage, schematic through construction documents, and test constructability as the drawings mature. That is our Estimate-Based Approach™: potential issues are addressed before they become problems, and the budget holds. By the time preconstruction is complete, pricing is established, project management is already engaged, and your build moves into construction without friction.

Our Builds

See All

A mud-caked work boot planted on a fresh concrete pour

Beyond the Build

  • The Lot at Liberty Station at dusk: a crowd on the terrace of a glass-walled bar under strings of lights, gathered around a fire table, with the Lot sign on the building behind

    Team Player

    Put the team before yourself. Energize others. Teamwork and open communication assures that any and all concerns are handled before they turn into issues.

  • A welder at work in low light, sparks flying from the joint

    Competitive

    Contractors punch in. Dempsey digs in. We embody the willpower, creativity, and ingenuity it takes to manifest that which wasn't there before.

  • Haven Farm + Table at Fox Point Farms on a clear afternoon: three timber lounge chairs around a fire pit on the lawn, children running across the grass, and the glass-gabled barn behind

    Genuine

    Business = personal contact. We operate with honesty, integrity, and authenticity in all aspects of operations, from communication to service to execution.

  • The Dempsey office lobby, a live-edge timber reception desk under the logo and the words Built With Grit set into the concrete floor

    Grit

    Run to the fire. Deliver solutions, not problems. Unlike most commercial builders, we're not afraid to get into the trenches and get our hands dirty.

  • A pair of worn work gloves and a coiled air hose on bare earth

    Get Sh*t Done

    With Dempsey, there's no cutting corners, no communication lapses, and no making excuses. We excel under pressure, we roll up our sleeves, and we see things through.

Gloved hands dragging a screed across a fresh concrete pour, the crew blurred behind

Build trust. The rest will follow.

Portrait of John Dempsey, CEO
Portrait of Bryce Raleigh, President
Portrait of Nick Alford, Vice President/Principal
Portrait of Jim Hansen, VP of Field Ops/Principal
Portrait of Mark Smits, Vice President of Preconstruction
Portrait of Kendra Berger, Chief Financial Officer
Portrait of Wes McNary, Project Executive
Portrait of Drew Wall, Director of Project Management
Portrait of Michaela Weibel, Senior Director of Marketing
Portrait of Rani El-Djoundi, Senior Director of Market Development
Portrait of Darla Kooiman, Director of Support Services
Portrait of Peter Vasilieff, Senior Preconstruction Manager
Portrait of Marcus Espinoza, Senior Project Manager
Portrait of Breann Smith, Safety Manager
Portrait of Cody Phillips, Senior Superintendent
Portrait of Lane Amburgey, People and Talent
Portrait of Alexei Burtscher, Senior Project Manager

Our Culture

Builders of People and Places

Founded In
2010

  • 210+

    projects completed

  • $775M+

    delivered

  • 10M+

    sq ft built

  • 16

    years in business

When I reached out to Dempsey to consult on some value-management measures, our project was behind schedule and over budget. It became clear that they had a much larger role to play than simply reviewing the plans. Within weeks, SBCS had a contract in place for Dempsey to take over as the General Contractor for the $25m project. I can most definitely state that without Dempsey, the project would not have moved forward, and millions of dollars of tax credits would have been unused.
Sean KilkennySBCS
If there was a problem, if there’s a question, they always say ‘Dempsey will do it’. Even if sometimes we think it really is someone else’s job that should be on the team and doing it, they always say ‘we’ll get it done’ and they always do get it done. We’ve told our other family members that manage different dealerships that we have that they should use Dempsey and don’t even bother to interview anybody else.
Susan HoehnHoehn Motors

Let’s Build Trust

Searching for a build, bid, or estimate? We’re here to help you.

Contact us