Commercial Expansion With Morton Buildings

June 15, 2015

For generations, Morton Buildings has produced a reputation as a pioneer in the American agricultural community. Most farmers know a Morton building when they see one, and more than a quarter-million customers have chosen to build Morton since it first erected a farm storage building in 1949.

As Morton navigates through its seventh decade in custom building construction, its prowess as a builder of farm buildings remains strong. But as the industry continues to evolve, Morton has found itself at the forefront of another building niche – commercial facilities.

Morton commercial buildings are being constructed around the country at a rapid rate. Business owners are quickly discovering the durability and efficiency of a wide variety of building uses, including retail facilities, storage buildings, restaurants, golf clubhouses and veterinary facilities.

For any camping or outdoors enthusiast, Moose Hillock Camping Resort in Fort Ann, N.Y. is a must-see. Founded in 2012 in the Adirondack Mountains near Lake George and the New York-Vermont border, the resort features a campground, heated swimming pool and a variety of other outdoor recreation.

Three Morton buildings were built at the New York property, including the main complex (60'W x 12'H x 112'L) that features a retail facility, game room and storage space. A maintenance building (48'W x 12'H x 24'L) and a pavilion (48'W x 14'H x 38'L) were also built, bringing the total combined square footage to nearly 10,000.

“We’ve had (Morton’s) product in New Hampshire at our other park 20 years ago and we’ve had great success with that,” operator Ed Paradis said of a largely successful campground that got its start more than 100 miles to the northeast. “We came across an ad … that I had seen – a picture of a Morton building. So I called. We were in the market to build a pavilion and their dollar value was the best bang for the buck at the time. And it still is, which is why we have three of their buildings here in New York as well.”

Erected by a crew from Morton’s construction center in Castleton, Vt., the newest buildings in New York showcase Morton’s Hi-Rib steel and stone wainscot on the exterior. Other features include porches, gable entry, eyebrow overhangs, skylights, and of course, Morton’s Energy Performer insulation package.

“The building is very efficient,” Paradis said when asked about the insulation system. “We have different areas of the building that we heat and air-condition and other areas are just left to the natural atmosphere. So far, we’ve had excellent luck with this building. Our utility bills are very reasonable and … people can come in here and feel the cool air in the air conditioning, come in in the fall and it’s warm in here. It just sets a good tone for the customer, the first impression when they’re coming in.”

In all, Moose Hillock resorts have operated for nearly three decades. Morton Buildings began its partnership with the resort in 1994 when the New Hampshire campground expanded less than a decade into its operation. The recent expansion to New York has already proved to be successful.

“When we came over here back in 2012 to put this project together … we turned right to Morton because we knew that their product is a superior product in steel buildings. And we did shop around. We got other bids and contractors involved. We just returned back to Morton because of the product and the speed that they could deliver.”

With nearly a half-dozen expansions under its belt already, Paradis indicated additional buildings would be in the resort’s future in the Adirondacks.

“We have phase two planned in the future, which requires more buildings of this magnitude. Morton will be our go-to company for building these buildings for us, without a doubt.”

The success found at the resort will only cause Morton’s reputation in the commercial industry to blossom. Paradis is one of countless business operators eager to spread the word.

“I have recommended Morton Buildings in the past. Within the camping industry, it’s a tight-knit group of owners and we all talk and compare notes. When one industry owner has a product that they truly believe and back one-hundred percent, we share that with the others. The (Morton) product – it’s just a better product than what you can get out there for a stick-build building. For a steel building, Morton Buildings has put this package together and it just truly works for what we do.”

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