Karl Kostelic, PE, LEED AP

Vice President
Karl Kostelic

Karl’s 35+ years of experience have given him deep expertise in cost estimating and preconstruction services for complex projects. His approach to estimating is informed primarily by his hands-on operations experience, and by his ongoing commitment to gathering and learning from processes that have worked well for CFC and other leading builders. Karl now uses this experience to assist clients with early project budgeting based on limited conceptual drawings. He knows what it means to take a napkin-sketch idea all the way to a full set of documents, and assists CFC’s clients in understanding the basis of their project budgets.

Karl puts ethics above all and continual improvement as a top priority. Up-front, fair, and constructive in his criticism, he enjoys mentoring, empowering, recognizing, and creating leadership opportunities for CFC’s next generation.

Professional and Educational Background

Building is in Karl’s blood. Growing up, he fixed fences and built barns on his family’s ranch. High school summers were spent on a framing crew, and the work continued through college. But he never thought he’d make construction his career. Karl studied engineering in college, launching his career with an engineering firm. While he enjoyed engineering, he missed being in the field, including the greater social aspects of working with construction personnel and being part of the process of creating the physical project. Over the next 16 years, he gained a range of experience as he grew from a Project Engineer to a Project Executive while working with three large national general contractors.

Karl’s move into preconstruction was founded in his desire to improve how it was being done. He’d become frustrated with the lack of operations knowledge he saw from estimators. He joined CFC in 2013.

Karl holds a BSCE from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo. He is a licensed Professional Engineer, a member of the American Society of Professional Estimators (ASPE), a LEED Accredited Professional certified by the US Green Building Council, and a Class A General Contractor in Colorado and Wyoming.

What Karl Values Most About Working at CFC

Karl greatly values CFC’s ethical, respectful approach to its clients, subs, and team members, which aligns with his personal ethics. There’s nobody around who’ll push you down as they make their way up the corporate ladder. At CFC, the focus is on unity, and on working together toward “what’s good for the group.”

Beyond Building

A Denver native, Karl comes from a long line of hard-working Coloradans. He and his family continue to work on and enjoy the Salida-area ranch established by Karl’s miner-turned-rancher grandfather. Karl spends most of his free time working on maintenance projects at the ranch and personal real estate development projects. Occasionally, he manages to escape to the outdoors, camping, hiking, or sleeping under the stars.

Meet the rest of the CFC team.