Beyond the Blueprint: How Three Titans Built the Modern Carolinas

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – August 05, 2026 – Amid the networking and keynote speeches at the Carolinas AGC Construction Summit & Expo in Asheville this past July, an awards ceremony stood out. Before nearly 900 industry members, the association honored three men whose careers are etched into the very asphalt and steel of the region. Ken Atkinson, Jonathan Bivens, and the late Seth T. Wooten, Jr. were inducted into the CAGC Hall of Fame, a recognition of decades spent shaping the infrastructure that underpins the Carolinas' current economic ascent.

While such awards often serve as a nostalgic look back, this year's ceremony felt different. It was a moment of reflection at a critical juncture. The Carolinas are booming, with a 2026 outlook buoyed by massive investments in healthcare, data centers, and power infrastructure. But this growth is tempered by persistent workforce shortages and the immense strain on an infrastructure system struggling to keep pace with a surging population. The careers of these three men, therefore, offer more than just a history lesson; they provide an essential blueprint for navigating the complex intersection of growth, policy, and execution that will define the region's future.

The Architects of a Region

The stories of Atkinson, Bivens, and Wooten are case studies in building from the ground up—both literally and figuratively. Their paths demonstrate a deep, hands-on understanding of the industry, a stark contrast to a modern economy often dominated by purely financial or digital metrics.

Ken Atkinson began his journey in 1969 with an Associate Degree in Civil Engineering and a role at the SC Highway Department. His career arc traces the evolution of the region's road-building industry. After transitioning to the private sector with APAC, he quickly moved from branch management to executive leadership, eventually serving as Vice President of the company’s SC Division. His post-“retirement” move to Palmetto Corp as Vice President wasn't a wind-down but a second act, where he was instrumental in expanding the company's service portfolio until his final retirement in 2022. Even now, through his own consulting firm, he remains engaged in the industry, a testament to a career spanning more than five decades.

Jonathan Bivens represents the critical link between public infrastructure needs and private sector execution. A licensed Professional Engineer, he started his career with the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) before joining S. T. Wooten Corporation in 1987. For four decades, Bivens has been a key figure in the firm's leadership, currently as Vice President of the Engineering and Design-Build Group. His tenure is marked by the management of major projects that form the backbone of North Carolina's transportation network, including vital corridors like I-85, I-40, and I-95. His leadership was pivotal in delivering the state's first-ever conventional design-build project for NCDOT in 2004, a delivery method that has since become a cornerstone of efficient infrastructure development.

Receiving the Hall of Fame Legacy award, Seth T. Wooten, Jr. personifies the transformative power of generational leadership. Taking the reins of the company his father founded in 1952, he learned the business not from a boardroom but from the seat of earth-moving equipment. This granular understanding fueled a visionary expansion. Under his guidance as President and later CEO, S.T. Wooten Corporation grew from a firm of a few hundred to a regional powerhouse of over 1,000 employees. This wasn't just growth; it was strategic diversification, investment in advanced equipment, and the cultivation of a culture that prioritized its people. He championed employee training and launched the company's formal safety program, recognizing that a company's greatest asset is its human capital.

From Blacktop to Balance Sheets: A Legacy in Infrastructure

The impact of these three leaders is not merely biographical; it is visible across the Carolinas. Their work represents the tangible link between construction activity and broad economic prosperity. The highways Bivens helped build are the arteries that now feed the region's logistics hubs and connect its booming metropolitan areas. The quality standards and collaborative frameworks Atkinson championed through his 20-plus years on the Carolinas AGC/SCDOT Joint Committee and 25 years with the SC Asphalt Pavement Association have ensured that this infrastructure is durable and reliable.

Bivens' role as a pioneer in the design-build methodology is particularly significant. This integrated approach, where a single entity handles both design and construction, streamlines project delivery, reduces costs, and fosters innovation. By successfully managing NCDOT's first major design-build project, he helped institutionalize a model that is now critical for delivering the complex infrastructure—from highways to data centers—that the Carolinas' economy demands. As one industry analyst noted, "The ability to deliver large-scale projects efficiently is a massive competitive advantage for a region, and leaders like Bivens were instrumental in building that capacity here."

Meanwhile, Seth T. Wooten, Jr.'s leadership demonstrates a different, but equally vital, economic principle: scaling with integrity. By growing S.T. Wooten Corporation into a major employer, he directly fueled local economies across North Carolina. His focus on creating a stable, well-trained, and safe workforce did more than just build a successful company; it built a sustainable ecosystem of skilled labor that benefits the entire industry. This investment in people is a crucial lesson as the sector grapples with today's acute labor shortages.

A Playbook for a New Era of Growth

The legacies of Atkinson, Bivens, and Wooten are not relics of a bygone era. They are a living playbook for the current generation of leaders facing a new set of challenges. The "cautious optimism" that characterizes the 2026 construction outlook is rooted in a fundamental tension: unprecedented opportunity paired with significant operational headwinds. The demand for new hospitals, data centers, and public utilities is immense, but so is the difficulty in finding skilled workers to build them.

The careers of the Hall of Fame inductees offer three core strategies for this moment. First is the power of deep, specialized expertise, as seen in Atkinson's half-century in civil engineering and asphalt. In an increasingly complex market, such mastery is invaluable. Second is the commitment to public-private collaboration. Bivens' and Atkinson's decades of service on joint committees with state DOTs underscore that building infrastructure is not an adversarial process but a partnership. This collaborative spirit is essential for tackling today’s gridlock and planning for tomorrow’s needs. Third is the principle that long-term success is built on people. Wooten's focus on safety, training, and benefits is the most direct solution to the industry's workforce crisis. Companies that invest in their employees will be the ones that thrive in a tight labor market.

As the Carolinas continue to attract new residents and businesses, the pressure to build smarter, faster, and more sustainably will only intensify. The work of these three men laid the physical foundation for this growth. Their enduring principles of integrity, collaboration, and investment in people have provided the professional framework required to build upon it.