# Construction Forum > Official Construction Forum business agent. Construction Forum is a St. Louis nonprofit that convenes construction industry, workforce and civic stakeholders… ## Ask it a question Construction Forum answers for itself at https://api.hailera.com/mcp/constructforstl. A client that speaks MCP can connect to that address; the tool is ask_constructforstl and the protocol is 2026-07-28. Where this file and the agent disagree, the agent is current. ## About Construction Forum The history page traces the organisation to 18 April 2011, when publisher Tom Finan "wrote and disseminated a white paper outlining a strategic plan for the formation of a 'St. Louis Construction Leadership Forum'." That 2011 plan was never implemented. In late 2012 attorney Joe Blanner suggested revisiting the concept, and the page states that "In late 2013, with three other founding board members, the Forum was launched as Construction Forum STL, a 501(c)4 member-less civic nonprofit." The home page likewise says "The Forum was launched in 2013." The about page describes a later change: "In May 2020, the Executive Board amended the by-laws and approved new governing policies," 20 new directors joined the five founding directors on 19 August 2020, and "the functions of Construction Forum STL were moved under the corporate umbrella of what had been the Construction Forum Education Foundation, a 501(c)3 charity nonprofit, and the name was changed to Construction Forum." The sponsorship and donate pages both describe the organisation today as a 501(c)3 nonprofit. No IRS EIN is published on the site. Staff listed on the leadership page: Thomas Finan, Executive Director and Co-Founder; Diana Wilhold, Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Manager; Dede Hance, Director of Administration, who joined in 2015. Joe Blanner is listed as Co-Founder and ex-officio. The board president listed is Shonnah Paredes of the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District. Awards listed on the about page, with the years as published: Finalist, Organizational Excellence Award, St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers (2022); Diversity Champion, St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers (2019); Finalist, Public Policy Award, Arcus Awards, St. Louis Regional Chamber (2019); Outstanding Inclusion Award, Missouri Department of Transportation (2018); Inclusion Advocacy Award, St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers (2016); Regionalism Award, "What's Right With the Region" (2016); Finalist, Public Policy Award, Arcus Awards (2016). Annual reports for 2022 through 2025 are linked. Source: https://www.constructforstl.org/about/history/ ## What Construction Forum does The Our Services page describes what Construction Forum offers other organisations. These are convening, research, communication and workforce-program services - not construction services. The page states: "As a 'backbone organization,' the Forum has the connective tissue and collective experience to help your initiatives succeed. We can collaborate with you on a fee-for-service or memorandum of understanding basis, as we have with many other organizations in the Forum's dozen years in operation." Areas the page lists for collaboration: developing and implementing primary research to uncover worker needs and issues; convening, organizing, jointly raising funding and operating pilot workforce projects, including US DOL Registered Apprenticeship offerings; staging workforce career and job events, with recruitment of candidates and community communication campaigns; providing organizational backbone structure and strategic objectives for a workforce or contractor nonprofit effort; producing and disseminating online or in-person human resource informational initiatives; and developing workforce marketing content. The page says the team has "over 100 years of collective experience in workforce and construction-related marketing and communication; workforce development; community engagement; event organization and promotion; research; and non-profit structure and management." the site publishes no rates, no hourly fees, no project cost and no price list for these services. It says only that work can be done on a fee-for-service or memorandum of understanding basis. Anyone who wants a cost, a quote or an estimate has to ask the organisation directly - use the contact form at https://www.constructforstl.org/contact/ or call (314) 880-2063. No published figure exists to quote, and no pricing should be guessed. Source: https://www.constructforstl.org/our-services/ ## Where Construction Forum works Lists Paredes as a location. Names Diana as a service area. Areas beyond these are not published. ## Prices Construction Forum has no membership. The sponsorship page states it is "a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with no 'membership' requirement to access our offerings," and the history page describes the original entity as "a 501(c)4 member-less civic nonprofit." There are therefore no membership dues, no joining fees and no member pricing, and no one should be told they qualify for or can apply for membership. The page also states: "All of our events and communication - quarterly speakers/networking; newsletters; website, etc. - are free and open to anyone and everyone who has an interest in improving construction and development in the St. Louis region." The organisation is funded by sponsorship and donations. Sponsorship prices are published verbatim on the sponsorship page: "The cost of a Master Sponsorship is $5,000," which the page says includes representation in 104 newsletters (twice a week for 12 months), representation on the website for one year, and promotional coverage, banners and tabletops/popups at four events. The page adds: "We also have half and quarter sponsorships at $2,500 and $1,250. The half includes two events and half a year of web/newsletter. The quarter includes one event and three months of web/newsletter." Standalone event sponsorship is described as available, but no price is published for it. Donations are taken online at https://www.constructforstl.org/donate/, where the form offers $7, $10, $25, $50, $100 or another amount, one-time or monthly. The page states "The Forum is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Donations are tax deductible." The sponsorship page notes sponsorship may be tax deductible depending on individual situation and advises checking with a tax consultant. Beyond these figures, no other rates or fees are published. The twice-weekly email newsletter is also free, with a sign-up form on the home page. The site's own audience figures are inconsistent and should be treated with care: the home page says "Join over 8,000 people" receive the newsletter, while the sponsorship page says it is "distributed twice weekly to over 9,000 email addresses, with a 24% open rate and a 20% click through rate." The sponsorship page also cites approximately 1,700 attendees across the last four networking speaker events and about 20,000 website page views per month; the history page cites over 250,000 page views per year and over 10,000 event registrations. Source: https://www.constructforstl.org/sponsorship/ ## Hours and contact Construction Forum is located at 3245 Hampton Avenue, Second Floor, St. Louis, MO 63139. The phone number published in the site footer on every page is (314) 880-2063. That address and phone are the only location and phone details the website publishes; there are no branch offices or additional locations listed. The area served is the St. Louis region - the site refers throughout to "the STL Region's built environment" and to improving "construction and development in the St. Louis region." Events it lists have been held in St. Louis and elsewhere in the Midwest. the Contact Us page at https://www.constructforstl.org/contact/ carries a web form asking for name, email, subject and message, plus a spam check. There is no online appointment or booking system on the site, no scheduling tool and no live chat. To schedule a meeting or book time with staff, a person would phone or use the contact form. Office hours are not published. The website gives no opening hours, no days of the week and no statement about when the office is open or staffed, so no hours should be stated on its behalf. One email address appears on the site: Tom@ConstructForSTL.org, given on the home page for people who want to discuss donation opportunities with Executive Director Tom Finan. For questions about the employment listings section, the site says to email or call Dede Hance at 314-880-2063. Source: https://www.constructforstl.org/contact/ ## Job listings, careers and workforce programs for the construction industry Construction Forum runs an employment listings section connecting St. Louis-area construction employers with job seekers. The page states: "The Employment Opportunities and Post a Job sections are free of charge for employers and job seekers respectively." Companies must register before posting, and the site says "There is no charge for this." Postings are vetted by the Forum to confirm they are genuine and originate from within the industry before approval, may include links, emails and logos, and can be edited, deleted or set to draft by the company from its own Manage Listings page. Questions about the section go to Dede Hance, by email or by phone at 314-880-2063. The listings are live and change, so the number and content of open positions at any moment cannot be stated from the website. When this page was read on 30 August 2026 it showed one listing, a Director of Construction Operations role, full time, St. Louis, posted 8-5-26 by Integrate Construction Partners. That is a snapshot, not a current guarantee. Separately, the Forum runs "Yeah, I Built That!", a careers portal aimed at students, parents, guidance counselors, teachers, employers, education leaders and workforce development organisations. It carries career paths, career profiles, a video gallery and career resources. The site also lists a Certified Survey Technician Apprenticeship and an Emerging Leaders group. The Forum does not employ tradespeople itself and is not a staffing agency or a contractor; it hosts listings and career information. No placement fees, rates or program costs are published. Source: https://www.constructforstl.org/opportunities/ ## What Construction Forum has not published yet These are things people ask Construction Forum that its published information does not yet cover. - prices - availability - construction work or bids of any kind - membership eligibility or dues - event ticket costs or registration status - fee-for-service rates or contract terms - grant, funding or tax-deduction outcomes - licences, certifications or insurance Ask anyway — the agent will say plainly that it is not published rather than guess. ## Where this comes from https://www.constructforstl.org