History & Operations

Coastal Mechanical Services (CMS) claims on its website to be the largest independently-owned Florida-based mechanical contractor in the State, with over $150 million in sales last year. The company specializes in design/build, construction, and service of HVAC, piping, plumbing and process systems. CMS is headquartered in Melbourne, FL, with offices in Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa and West Palm Beach. CMS has over 300 employees. Paul J. Goodwin became CEO of the company in July 2009.

Subsidiaries and Affiliates

Coastal Mechanical is one of at least 20 active corporations under the umbrella of Venture Management Group, Inc. According to the most recent available corporate registration, the officers and directors of Venture Management Group are Howard “Skip” Hauser, Al Osterhout and Kimberly Brown, all of whom are involved in other affiliated companies. Venture Management Group appears to be the parent of CMS, as it is a Manager of the LLC, and it is the sponsor of benefit plans for CMS employees. Venture Management’s other subsidiaries and affiliates are primarily construction and real estate companies. Among these are:

OSHA and Safety

Coastal Mechanical’s website includes the following claim:

It does not appear that the 936 day (a bit over 2 and ½ years) figure is being updated regularly, so it is unclear what time period this covers. 

According to the Florida Division of Workers Compensation “Loss Run” database, the following claims have been filed against CMS, Venture Management Group and related entities for the past five years (claimant names have not been reproduced in this table):

OSHA records for the past ten years show two inspections with violations for Coastal Mechanical and related companies. Click here for summaries of the OSHA inspections.

Litigation/Wage Enforcement

Coastal Mechanical has been the subject of one Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division case. The case, which closed in 2002, found that CMS had failed to pay one employee $485.63 in proper overtime wages. Below are recent court cases involving Coastal Mechanical and/or Venture Management Group. A more detailed look at the company’s litigation history, including all subsidiaries and affiliates, will be included in a future update.

Federal Cases

LeBlanc v. Coastal Mechanical Services US District Court, West Palm Beach, FL

LeBlanc, a former CMS employee, sued alleging that he suffered racial discrimination and retaliation. The case, which began in state court in 2004, was decided in favor of CMS by a jury verdict in November 2005. After the plaintiff appealed, the parties reached a settlement and jointly dismissed the case in March 2006. The following filings are available (Warning: Some documents contain vulgarity and/or offensive language):

Motion to File Second Amended Complaint, 10/27/2004

Opposition to Motion to File Second Amended Complaint, 11/08/2004

Answer to Second Amended Complaint, 01/06/2005

Amended Answer to Second Amended Complaint, 01/11/2005

Motion to Compel Production of Financial Records, 04/05/2005

Motion Regarding Evidence as to Racial Comments, 05/27/2005

Order on Motion for Summary Judgment, 08/24/2005

Jury Verdict for Defendant, 11/22/2005

Stipulation for Dismissal, 03/22/2006

State Cases

Tax Incentives

In May 2007 the Economic Development Commission of Florida's Space Coast announced that Coastal Mechanical was awarded a package of tax incentives to help fund an expansion of its headquarters which would create 40 new jobs. According to a press release, Coastal Mechanical was awarded the following:

1. Brevard County Ad Valorem Tax Abatement at 80% for 8 years
   • Total savings to company: $48,576
   • Total revenue to the county: $92,934
2. City of Melbourne Ad Valorem Tax Abatement at 20% for 2 years
   • Total savings to company: $14,912

Before the tax abatement was awarded, Coastal Mechanical’s CFO, Kimberly Brown, testified before the Brevard County Board of Commissioners, warning that if CMS could not get the economic benefits they needed locally,” they would look to the I-4 corridor to expand the operation.” According to a Florida Today article, Brown also “warned the (Melbourne) City Council her company had back-up alternatives across Florida.”

"If we can't get this inducement to stay, we have several other options -- Orlando, Tampa, I-4 corridor-types of things -- because we do operate all over the state," Brown said.

According to its website, Kimberly Brown now serves on the Board of Directors of the EDC of Florida's Space Coast.

Pension/Benefits

CMS employee benefit plans are sponsored by Venture Management Group. The following is from the company’s most recent 401k plan filings:

In 2007, 345 Venture Management Group employees participated in the company’s healthcare plan.