Allison Otto got her introduction to construction as a girl,
when she would visit her father at work. He took over the
family business, Otto Construction, in 1971, founded by
her grandfather in 1947. She remembers driving around
with her dad, Carl Otto, while he pointed out projects the
company built.
“I didn’t realize what an impact Otto Construction had
on the community,” she says. “My dad was very humble
and didn’t bring work home, so when we would do week-
end project tours, I really got a sense of our impact. From
the Sacramento Zoo, Frank Fat’s restaurants and the 7UP
bottling facility to the Vacaville factory outlets, Eskaton
(senior living) communities and projects in Old Sacramen-
to, we were everywhere. And that was only in the 1980s.”
Otto is now executive vice president of the company,
and its major projects include the $50 million Powerhouse
Science Center and $32 million North Natomas Commu-
nity Center and Aquatics Complex.
Otto didn’t begin her professional career in the family
business. After earning her business degree from Universi-
ty of Southern California, she was a lobbyist at the Capitol
before her father called her to join the company. She worked
with him for seven years until his death in 2007. Otto, who
started the company’s marketing department, now manages
new business acquisition and client relations (she is also a
co-owner of the company). “Eighty percent of the time we
build for repeat clients,” she says.
Otto says one of her proudest accomplishments is
working on a project for the Society for the Blind her father
started in 2005. The company has been renovating the
Society for the Blind’s building on S Street in Sacramento
as funds become available and says it will be named for her
father — 15 years after he gave the organization his word
the company would see it through.
She’s also proud of Greer Elementary School in the San
Juan Unified School District. The $38 million renovation
project took two years and was completed in 2019 without
interrupting the school schedule. “Education has been my
primary focus over the past 5-10 years,” she says. “In
K-12 projects alone, we have nearly $200 million in
school construction.”
Otto says she tries to make sure her em-
ployees (there are 150) have her trust and feel
empowered to make their own decisions
in the field. She says she encourages new
ideas, promotes employee development
and makes them feel part of a team.
“Something I’m thankful for ev-
ery day and I’m very proud of is the
dedication and integrity of the
staff,” Otto says. “We have very
low turnover. Our staff has so
much respect for our family
and our clients and doing
the right thing.”
CONSTRUCTION
Allison Otto
Executive Vice President
Otto Construction
by Judy Farah
March 2020 | comstocksmag.com
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