About

Pacific Restores Historic Humboldt Park Boat House

Building On Our Expertise

We have a proud history of building for almost 30 years—from big, institutional and public works projects (like Fermilab, Adler Planetarium and the U.S. military) to specialized health care projects (completed projects in over 10 hospitals) to retail, restaurants, industrial and multi-family residential buildings.

When you add Pacific to your team, expect strategic problem-solving and straightforward talk. We will turn your project over from top to bottom to hunt opportunities and areas for improvement.

About Our People

This industry is crowded with consultants, magical software and theoretical model after model. Pacific brings more to the table. Our people make all the difference.

Bart Friedman

Stephen Bykowski

Ike Hong

Chris Wales

Luigi Storino

Chad Sibigtroth

Ken Shanahan

Vanessa Trench

Project Superintendents

Mark Benson

Jack Chynoweth

Michael Frain

Bart Friedman – CEO / Principal

With almost 25 years’ experience in the real estate industry, Bart has been involved in almost every aspect of the business. His broad base of knowledge provides him with the ability to foresee issues and proactively solve problems thus safeguarding projects from complications. As a leader, he is passionate about building a performance-driven, supportive culture while developing meaningful industry-wide relationships.

Stephen Bykowski – COO / Principal

Steve is an experienced construction professional having been involved in retail, industrial, office, and multi-family projects for over 25 years. Steve has a deep understating of all phases of construction. He has successfully lead large project teams from initial concept drawings through final inspections. He has worked on grocery anchored retail centers in the heart of dense urban environments, successfully managing the client, sub-contractors, tenants, the municipality, and members of the community. His past involvement in complicated builds gives him a deep perspective and understanding of construction that provides a safeguard to his clients, assuring them that the project will be delivered on time, within budget, and conforming to the design criteria.

Ike Hong – Chief Strategy Officer

Ike Hong has been a leading construction executive for more than 30 years solving complicated problems for real estate developers, architects and government agencies. His unrivaled cost estimating and project management skill has supported projects like the Great Lakes Naval Training Center, the Sears World Headquarters and Chicago’s Adler Planetarium.

Ike founded Pacific in 1993 and quickly scaled the firm from his kitchen table to more than 80 employees. Pacific successfully led ground-up and retrofit construction projects throughout the Chicago region—on time and under budget.

Ike continues to play an important role at the company, using his vast knowledge to foresee industry trends, mitigate risk for the company and their clients, and forging new relationships.

In addition to his professional achievements, Ike has held board positions at Asian Human Services, Rush Northshore Hospital and NorthShore University Health System. He currently serves on the boards at The Night Ministry and the Mosaic House Ministry in Chicago.

Ike holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering granted by Purdue University in 1986.

Chris Wales – Partner / Vice President

Chris Wales has worked in the construction business for almost two decades—longer if you count his high school breaks surveying and staking projects for a civil engineer. Those experiences motivated his bachelor’s in geography from the University of Kansas, and later spurred his desire to become a general contractor.

Chris is certified OSHA 40 hour, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Construction on Quality Management, and Environmental Compliance Assessment Training and Tracking Systems (ECATTS).

According to Chris, “Honesty and respect for others can go a long way in this industry,” a thought he carries with him every day to the office. He adds that his favorite part about construction is “being able to see the transformation of a project” from concept to in-the-ground.

Luigi Storino – Partner / Chief Financial Officer

Luigi Storino is a 20-year veteran of the industry. He earned his bachelor’s in accounting from the University of Illinois and started out his career at Tishman Construction during the tech boom, working on projects for companies like Level 3 Communications and Worldcom. Luigi got his big break early on with a promotion to controller, a challenge he gladly rose to meet. “I am so grateful I was given that opportunity,” Luigi still says. “I would not be where I am currently without that event.”

He says his favorite part of the construction business is “definitely giving full effort at full throttle, every day.”

Chad Sibigtroth – Project Manager

Chad has been in the industry for 15 years, 10 on the architectural side and 5 years on the construction side. He gained early enthusiasm in the industry from his uncle being an architect. Chad began looking at drawings with him over holidays and pursued Architecture because of him. Building a strong architectural background helped him grow in the construction industry. Chad’s certifications include NCARB, CAP Alumni, Design and Construction Network, Lake Zurich Young Professionals.

“The whole difference between construction and creation is exactly this; that a thing can only be loved after its constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists.” –Charles Dickens

Ken Shanahan – Project Manager

Ken Shanahan began managing construction projects in 2015, using his bachelor’s in applied engineering (with concentration in construction management) from Eastern Illinois to guide his way. He takes pride in having learned the ropes from the ground up, motivated by his early, hands on experience working in the field on many construction projects.

Ken’s keys to success, he says, have been his “persistence and problem-solving skills.” He is known for staying diligent and finding unique or creative ways to solve tricky situations.

“It is a very rewarding feeling to take a project from inception and seeing it through to the end product,” Ken adds.

Vanessa Trench – Senior Project Accountant

Vanessa is the Senior Project Accountant at Pacific. She has 20 years of construction accounting experience. Vanessa is intimately familiar with construction and property accounting and is a valuable resource making certain that all project finances are in order. In her free time, Vanessa volunteers for Palos Stars, a youth football and cheerleading organization.

Mark Benson – Project Superintendent

Mark is a 3rd generation carpenter working in construction for more than 30 years. He is an Eastern Illinois University graduate and is an Alderman in Countryside, IL. His free time is spent with family and friends. As Project Superintendent, Mark is responsible for all project field activity including trade contractor oordination, project scheduling, site logistics, job site safety and quality control. Mark has overseen many governmental and municipal projects as well as numerous medical buildouts.

Jack Chynoweth – Project Superintendent

As Project Superintendent, Jack is responsible for all project field activity including trade contractor coordination, project scheduling, site logistics, job site safety and quality control. He has overseen many complex builds such as a large project for Fermilab, the construction of multitenant retail/commercial space, and projects for the United States Air Force. Jack has over 30 years of experience in the construction industry and started as an engineering assistant (Combat Engineer Squadron) in the Air Force.

Michael Frain – Project Superintendent

Michael has over 30 years of construction experience as a Project Superintendent and Quality Control Manager. Michael is responsible for all project field activities including trade contractor coordination, project scheduling, site logistics, job site safety and quality control. His long list of past experience includes the on-site supervision of projects for the US Army Corps of Engineers, Adler Planetarium, Harold Washington Library, and Ravenswood Terrace (150 unit multifamily project).