Northern Exposure

By Ted McIntyre

After a two-year delay, Louie Zagordo looks forward to introducing himself as OHBA’s next president

It’s an overcast Wednesday afternoon in July and Louie Zagordo has negotiated his way roughly 400 kms from his home in Sudbury to a downtown Toronto hotel.

“It’s almost always the same,” he says. “Three and a half hours of clear sailing, then I hit that bottleneck at the 401 and it’s the first time I’ve had to hit the brakes since leaving. Then you crawl into the city for the next 45 minutes.”

Zagordo, the Ontario Home Builders’ Association’s incoming president, has ventured into Toronto to meet with OHBA’s new CEO, Luca Bucci. Zagordo was part of the hiring committee that narrowed down executive-level prospects before selecting Bucci for the Association’s most lofty post.

Louie has temporarily stationed his white Ram 1500 Laramie on the curb directly in front of the lobby on a street loaded with construction cones and fencing, before venturing inside to inquire about his parking options. Short of another pandemic wave, it’s unlikely he will face anything quite as imposing in the coming year as what comes next. Instructed to use the hotel’s underground garage across the street, Zagordo weaves his truck down the spiral entrance before encountering a sign that cautions of a 6’2 overhead clearance in the actual parking area. Realizing that the 6’5” height of his shiny white roof will make further progress quite impossible, he is forced to reverse his course—avoiding motorists behind—in backing all the way out of the garage.  

Ironically, Zagordo had planned to buy an SUV instead. “I’d driven a pickup ever since getting into the industry—35 years. A Chevy, a Ford—I’ve probably had every make and model,” he says. “Then a year ago, I said to my wife Alba, ‘I don’t want to drive a pickup anymore. I think I’m beyond that now. I’m thinking of an SUV.’ And then Alba says, ‘If you were to come to my house in an SUV to give me an estimate, I’d see you as a businessman, not as a contractor.’ Then she shows me pictures of an SUV and pictures of a pickup truck, and says, ‘Which guy would you hire?’

“I haven’t given her the satisfaction of telling her that she was right just yet.” 

BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY 

In speaking of Alba, Zagordo is now beaming. But in some respects, there’s always been a glow around him—literally—since he entered this world on July 4, 1964. “I was born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie, a border city, so we’d always go down to the waterfront of St. Mary’s River to watch the fireworks on the other side for my birthday,” he says. “The Americans always outdid the Canadians when it came to fireworks.”

Zagordo’s parents, Rosina and Antonio (Tony), emigrated to Sault Ste. Marie from the Southern Italian town of Aiello Calabro. Tony spent time at the Soo’s Weyerhaeuser Paper Mill before latching on with Algoma Steel, the prized place of employment in town.

“My dad, my uncles and father-in-law all worked there. It was a high-risk job, working in a polluted environment. But they’d be done work by 3 pm,” Louie says.

Those hours in advance of dinnertime were always put to good use, honing their building skills with projects around the house. “With help of contractor friends, my father bought a property and built a house. And then another—all while still working at Algoma,” Zagordo says. “I was getting to be 10, 11 years old, when I started going along with him and seeing the talents of all the different trades. There was certainly no such thing as a programmable mitre saw back then. Instead, there was sandpaper and hand planers, and cutting a 45-degree angle on a mitre box with a little bottle of glue to hold the joints. It was amazing to learn that way.

“Then as time goes on, you pour a foundation, then the lumber trucks arrive and the frame comes together, the floor goes down and you start to see something develop,” Zagordo shares. “I have to credit my dad for that—dragging me along and keeping me involved, always telling me, ‘Someday you’ll have to do your own repairs.’”

Zagordo’s first official job was a departure from that environment—working in the produce department of the local Dominion grocery store in the west end of the Soo. It was a comfortable job in every sense—“air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter.”

But his heart was with the construction industry—and a new girlfriend.

“Both our dads worked at Algoma, and the plant would put on an annual late-August picnic for employees at the old Barbary Coast campground,” Louie remembers. “I saw this girl cycling past with the name ‘Alba’ on the back of her T-shirt. I called out, ‘Alba!’ She turned back, and I asked, ‘Where are you going?’”

Zagordo almost regretted not following. “We lost touch after the picnic,” he says, “but then a year later, I ran into her at the high school dance at Bawating Collegiate. We dated for about five years after that, before getting married at 21.”

By the time Zagordo graduated from Bawating, which was fortuitously a vocational school, his professional course in life was also set. “I saw tradespeople mixing and doing terrazzo, bricklayers, plumbers soldering copper, electricians. 

“And then there was my mentor, Caesar Mincone, a master carpenter, who took me under his wing for many years,” Zagordo shares. “He knew that I wanted to learn, and gave me every opportunity to do so. ‘Let me put the screw in,’ and he would step back and watch. He’d show me the tricks of the trade. In his pouch, he always carried a ball of clear wax, so I wanted one of those in my pouch too!’ So he gave me some wax. I carried it around for two weeks, having no clue what it was for. Then we’re on a job one day and I couldn’t fit the drill into a spot. So Caesar goes into his box and grabs a Robin Hood screwdriver and a two-and-a-half-inch screw, and before he’s ready to drive the screw through the wood, he reaches in and grabs his wax and runs the screw through it. Then he takes his Robbie and begins to effortlessly hand-turn this screw into the wood. And I look at him and say, ‘So that’s why we carry the wax!” 

Zagordo also credits his father-in-law, Tony, for the evolution of his construction know-how. “Respect your elders,” Louie says. “There’s a reason for the advice they’re offering. I was taught how to make a dollar go further, simple ways of grading and levelling without expensive equipment—so many things from those who came before me.”

BUILDING A LEGACY

Zagordo took that knowledge and wisdom and built on it, in all senses—25 years’ worth—as he further entrenched himself in the region’s home building environment. But he eventually needed a little room to manoeuvre, and a legacy to fashion. In 2014, Louie became his own boss, founding SLV Homes. 

Alba handled the administrative duties while a pair of labourers worked alongside Zagordo. Eight years and multiple awards later, the team numbers more than 15. 

“At the inception of the company, our focus was on custom home building. It is only as time went on that we developed our skills and reputation, allowing us to expand into renovations and contracting,” Zagordo says. “And then we opened up a builder showroom. We’re one of the only builders in Sudbury to have one within their business. And we’ve also expanded our team to include an interior designer to advise clients on colour choices and finishes, and a design specialist whose 3D software allows people to walk through the home to see the details before it becomes a reality.

“Since founding SLV Homes, I’ve strived to grow the business because I have a succession plan in mind,” Zagordo says. “My son Mark is our Vice President and will carry the family name. He has two boys and my hope is that they will find a rewarding career in this field,” Louie says. 

And that family is growing, with the addition of Carson Houle (who married Louie’s daughter Vanessa) as the head of SLV’s contracting division.

 

“I made one golden rule for both Carson and my son Mark when they each got married: ‘Whatever happens in our lives, we are always going to be a family, and every Sunday there is dinner at my house.’ And if it’s not Sunday, it’s a different night,’” Zagordo says. “When Carson joined the company, I told him the rules still applied: ‘I don’t care what we think of each other between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., you’re still having dinner Sunday night.’ I have to thank my wife for that. On Thursday morning she’s already thinking about Sunday dinner.

“Alba has been a big part of our business,” Louie says. “She is stepping back to play more of the grandmother role and a little golf. She has been a backbone for me throughout my entire career. All the times I’d go out to work and not be home until 7 or 8 o’clock at night, she took care of the kids, and she looked after the household. And she was my partner when it came time to build our own homes. ‘Let’s try this. Let’s change that.’ She learned a lot about the business. She’d probably be one of my best site supervisors if she wanted to get out there!”

Zagordo has long been a fan of the ‘Let’s try this. Let’s change that’ philosophy. The art of creation and craftsmanship and building something that will more than meet the needs of his clients fuels him (the SLV in his company moniker is actually an acronym for “Style Luxury Value”—three promises he makes to every customer). 

“It’s why we categorize ourselves as custom builders,” he says, “because I’ve honestly never built the same house twice.”

And ‘custom’ doesn’t necessarily imply a new home, Zagordo stresses. “Many times, a client has sat at our desk wanting to build a custom home, and an hour into the meeting they say, ‘We didn’t realize the project was going to cost this much.’ And that leads us to the following conversation: ‘So where do you live? Do you like it there? Your kids are happy? Do you love your neighbours? Could I interest you in possibly putting a renovation onto your home instead?’ Then they look at each other and say, ‘We never even thought of that.’ And the next thing you know, I’m being invited to their existing house to figure out what we can do—adding 200 square feet to the second storey, 100 square feet to the rear, a garage. In the end, I’m not turning business away; I’ve just put them on a different path. And it’s so rewarding because they get everything they wanted, they’ve invested in their home, and spent a lot less money. And then we have the loyalty of those folks and great word-of-mouth marketing. And now I have other builders who will refer their clients to us if they’re looking for renovations: ‘Call SLV. Louie’s your guy.’

PASSING THE TORCH 

For the next year, however, Louie will also be OHBA’s guy, as he takes the presidential reins from outgoing president Bob Schickedanz. That transition was initially on the books for 2020, but the pandemic tossed the Association’s plans into a blender, leading to an unprecedented three-year term for Schickedanz.

“I knew what the job entailed going in,” Schickedanz says. “Certainly, by the time I got to the second year, I appreciated where our industry was at with respect to the pandemic. But it required a lot of energy to juggle things. I can’t deny that Year Three was more of a challenge than anticipated, and I put a lot into it. But, from my heart, I feel like I got a lot more out of it than I put in.”

There may also have been advantages to the unusually delayed presidential handoff.

“When Joe Vaccaro stepped down as CEO, a lot of volunteers stepped up and helped out. So yes, I think it was important to make sure the Association had a level of focus and continuity that endured while we were searching for a new CEO before landing on Luca Bucci,” Schickedanz says. “The pandemic also made the level of interaction between our organization, government and stakeholders difficult in terms of Louie having a year to lead up to his role of president, to be physically at the table. So that natural handoff was missing.”

Zagordo agrees. “It gave me the time and opportunity to better understand the provincial landscape, industry leaders and stakeholders, and to fully comprehend issues we will continue to be dealing with.” 

THE AGENDA

So what’s next for the association? “We are working to create a new atmosphere that focuses on acquiring talent in the skilled trades. We have to create a sustainable industry by taking a hard look at succession planning to ensure we have the labour needed for years to come,” Zagordo says. “And we must continue to ensure that work is being done at that highest standard—and through all the proper channels.”

Zagordo has a particular appreciation—and passion—for OHBA’s value from a member standpoint.

“As a relatively young business working through the challenges of COVID, OHBA showed me I had a voice that could make a difference,” Zagordo says. “Through the power of the association, we were able to work with the government to find solutions to keep residential construction as an essential service throughout the pandemic. That allowed me to keep my guys working so we could continue to build the homes Ontarians so desperately need.”

Since signing up as a member of the Sudbury Home Builders’ Association in 2014, Zagordo has steadily worked his way up the chain, joining the OHBA Board in 2017, where he sat for two terms as 2nd V.P., before ascending to 1st V.P. in 2019.

“The association helped me create a company out of nothing,” he says. “And now, with their help, I’m about to become President, representing over 4,000 members across the province. It’s hard to express the value I’ve felt in being a member. It’s allowed me to elevate the SLV name in Sudbury and across the Ontario home building industry. It has given me the opportunity to ‘be in the room’ with the best and brightest in the industry, to share ideas to help further the residential construction industry. And as a remote Northern Ontario builder, I’ve had the chance to learn from professionals across the province that I may not have been able to work with otherwise. It opens up a provincial network of connections for you—suppliers, trades, industry partners, municipalities.”

Little wonder that redefining the value of membership is a key piece of Zagordo’s agenda. “The association is only as strong as its base,” he notes. “When you look at our 27 locals, the vast majority are made up of 50 to 150 members. I don’t just want to keep them intact; I want to help grow those bases. It’s incredibly important for me to meet every one of these locals during my term. To share the stories from Northern Ontario, to share my own stories of what I’ve learned and how important membership in the OHBA has been in my life and for my company.”

Zagordo confidant Jack Marandola has seen Louie in action. “As president of the Sudbury Association and V.P. of the OHBA, Louie participated in a number of international housing tours with OHBA to examine how other countries are implementing new building techniques,” Marandola says. “He loves expanding his knowledge base—growing and learning and getting different perspectives to see if it’s a fit for what he or others are doing back home. He really wants to find the best solution for everyone involved.”

“I’ve seen him interacting with his crew on jobsites, and he is the first to pick up a rake and chip in to help get the job done,” says Carson’s father, Kirby Houle. “I’ve seen Louie’s commitment to delivering a quality product, and his efforts to pass on his compassion and knowledge.” 

The latter fire burns bright inside Zagordo. “I’ve learned and benefitted from so many people. I’m now at the stage of my life where I want to do the same, to give back. Whether we’re hiring labourers or skilled people, I want to share what I’ve learned—it’s not some secret. 

“And I tend to be pretty determined when it comes to getting things done,” Zagordo assures. “That’s kind of my motto. When the answer is no, I’m the guy who says there has to be a way that we can find a solution or find an alternative.”

Even if it’s a parking garage with a 6’2” ceiling.