As college building goes up, he’s a maestro in Midtown

BY MICHAEL S. BUTLER
NNB Student Reporter

ST. PETERSBURG – It is organized chaos, a noisy and frenetic ant colony of shared purpose.

There are electricians, plumbers, heating and air conditioning specialists, masons and other craftsmen in every direction, high and low.

Their goal is to complete the new Midtown branch of St. Petersburg College at 13th Avenue S and 22nd Street in the historic “Deuces” neighborhood by June.

At the back of the building stands Antwuan Wells, LEMA Construction’s assistant superintendent on the project, an unassuming maestro coordinating labor, schedules, acquisition of materials and many more tasks. On an average day he helps command a crew of 60 to 70 workers.

When complete, the 49,000-square-foot, 3-story facility will be the educational home of countless students and an anchor in an area that is economically adrift and eager for reinvention.

It will be named the Douglas L. Jamerson Jr. Midtown Center in honor of the late state legislator and state education commissioner, a native of St. Petersburg and graduate of the college.

For Wells, this job is personal.

“This means more opportunity, affordable education and economic development,” said Wells.

“I was born here right next to Gibbs High School,” said Wells. “My father has done a lot of work here in this community, as well as my brother, building homes and businesses. I live right behind here off of 19th Street and Melrose. And I also cut hair at the barbershop right here on 11th Avenue.”

He is the son of an architect; his father was in design for over 30 years. Wells learned drafting and planning with him on construction sites. His enthusiasm for this project is evident.

“The architect really threw everything into this design, from the bricks to the windows, to the stucco, the different paint colors,” said Wells.

“From 6 in the morning to 6 in the evening, we had concrete trucks coming in, pouring concrete for the columns,” said Wells. “Overall, we probably had about 30 trucks come in.”

A youthful 39, Wells looks the part of construction superintendent in his dark blue jeans, steel-toed boots, short-sleeve white dress shirt and standard-issue orange safety vest and hard hat.

He’s delighted by the support he’s received from the community on the project. He’s gotten compliments on the progress of the building. And he’s proud of the protective nature of nearby residents who are concerned about the security of the site.

“There have been several occasions where, even myself, I’ve come on site in the evening checking the grounds, and I’ve been run off by some of the residents,” said Wells with a smile.

‘They didn’t know who I was.”

A lot of people also ask Wells for an inside look at the new building.

As he walks through, he winds his way past pallets of sand, brick and endless 5-gallon buckets of sheetrock mud.

To the layman, it might still look like a concrete skeleton. But Wells can already see the result, pointing out the locations of future classrooms, administrative offices, elevators and restrooms.

“I’m really impressed with the windows,” he said. “I love the windows. It gives you a lot of light so you can see in from the outside and see from the inside as well.”

The construction project and his work at the nearby Esquire Barber Shop on nights and weekends would keep most people busy enough. But Wells also mentors at nearby elementary, middle and high schools, helps run the Deuces Live Market on Sunday afternoons, and works as a supervisor with Habitat for Humanity of Pinellas County, a job he will take on full time when this project is done.

“I find something to do that’s positive and productive,” said Wells.

But he doesn’t want to think that far in advance right now.

“I’m more concerned that we maintain what we have here in the neighborhood, as far as the school itself, the homes that are already here, preserving those homes, the history,” said Wells.

And this job has to be completed by the beginning of June so classes there can begin this fall.

Again, he smiles.

“We’ll be ready.”