Athens company 20 years old
Janke General Contractors has grown over the past decades
Steve Janke started his business, Janke General Contractors, 20 years ago in the basement of his Athens home. Today, the company operates in a 29,700 square-foot combined office and manufacturing facility.
The Janke family, which includes over 50 employees, is inviting the public to help the company celebrate its 20th anniversary at an open house from 2-6 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 10. The open house will be held at the new offi ce and shop addition, located at 1224 Mount View Lane in Athens.
Athens native Steve Janke, a 1988 graduate of Athens High School, served in the Wisconsin Army National Guard from 1988 until 1990. He founded Janke General Contractors on Jan. 19, 2001, after working for other similar businesses in Wisconsin and Washington. He explains why he chose to start his own business.
“In the early 1990s, while working for a previous employer, there was a trail job bidding processes in Wausau,” Steve Janke said. “I told my boss we should bid on the job, but he declined. I followed the job and found there was only one bidder. I saw at that point there was an opening in recreational construction.
“In 1990, my mom, dad and sisters moved to the Seattle, Wash., area for job opportunities for both my dad and me. Andrea and I moved with the intent of staying in Seattle, but after living in the big city for a while, we decided it wasn’t for us, so we packed up our car and drove back to Athens. We got married the following year and we’ve lived in Athens ever since then. Both Andrea and I grew up in Athens, which felt like a good place to raise our family too.”
Steve and Andrea have the following four children: Jessica Janke, 28; Savannah Janke, 25, who is married to Collin Ellenbecker of Athens; Gabriella Janke, 21, and Aiden Janke, 17.
In the beginning, Steve Janke’s wife, Andrea (Rausch) Janke of Athens, took an introductory to design course at Northcentral Technical College in Wausau at night while she was working full-time at Wausau Insurance Companies during the day. As part of her class assignment, she designed the Janke logo, depicting “Janke” with a box to represent “working outside the box.” This logo still represents the business and how it operates today.
“Over the years, I noticed smaller projects like dam repairs and those involving water weren’t getting much attention,” Steve Janke said. “In the earlier years of Janke General Contractors, we focused on those outsidethe- box types of projects that put us on the map. We also took the time to bid on smaller utility and earthwork projects along the way.
“Over the next six months, I continued to bid work and the business grew. I hired an office assistant and a few more employees in the field as Janke General Contractors continued on its trek to success.”
Steve Janke’s projects over the years have included large civil projects, including dam construction, lock reconstruction, highway and pedestrian bridges, box culverts, large parks and recreational projects. Janke also offers consultation, engineering, project management and design-build services to local and state governments, businesses and private parties throughout the Midwest.
