Ada Family Dentistry

Client
Ada Family Dentistry

Location
Ada, MI

For years, Dr. Samy Salhadar and his team at Ada Family Dentistry operated out of a modest 1,400-square-foot converted house. While the practice was successful, they had long since outgrown the space, limiting their ability to see patients and stifling any potential for growth. Dr. Salhadar’s vision was not just for a larger office, but for a premier dental facility that could serve the Ada community while providing a new revenue stream through additional tenant suites.

When it came time to select a construction partner, Dr. Salhadar chose First Companies based on a foundation of trust and reputation. Having previously completed a small addition for him, First Companies was also highly recommended by his colleagues, Dr. Chip Niquette (Third Coast Oral Surgery) and Dr. Karl Evanoff (Evanoff Dental). The well-connected nature of the dental world meant that First Companies’ track record of excellence was already well-known to the client.

This 12,000-square-foot, two-story medical office building was designed to harmonize with the local township’s aesthetic, featuring a rustic burgundy “Ada Brick” and prominent cast stone features on the exterior. Inside, the goal was a high-end residential feel rather than a clinical one. Dr. Salhadar wanted to provide an environment that was peaceful and welcoming to his patients. This was achieved through clean, classic lines, a warm color palette, and custom-stained millwork with extensive stone tops. The lobby features a faux fireplace with a roman clay finish, luxury vinyl plank flooring throughout, and exposed glue-lam ceilings that provide significant architectural depth.

As beautiful as the finished product is, the project was not without its challenges. The construction process was defined by extreme site constraints and utility delays:

- Utility Obstacles: One of the most significant hurdles was an existing power line located directly in the footprint of the new building. Despite reaching out to the utility provider in November of 2024 for a January 2025 groundbreaking, the pole was not relocated until late March. Rather than halting work, First Companies moved forward with construction, erecting steel and building a stair tower to within feet of the live power line.

- Site Constraints: The building ran property line to property line with zero laydown space, requiring constant coordination with neighbors and the city to manage equipment.

- Public Safety: During the summer, a weekly Farmer’s Market filled the adjacent parking lot with thousands of pedestrians, necessitating a “no delivery” policy on Tuesdays and full-time spotters for construction traffic during those market hours.

- Supply Chain Resilience: When a key vendor experienced significant delivery delays, First Companies coordinated with a specialized stone partner to expedite countertop templating and installation. By achieving remarkable turnarounds, the team successfully maintained the project schedule despite these setbacks.

Whether it is solving logistics problems or finding ways to save money, our goal is to always act in the client’s best interest. In the case of Dr. Salhadar, First Companies utilized value engineering to enhance the project, such as replacing architectural ceiling tiles with high-rated sound tiles that provided better noise reduction for a lower cost.

Despite the power delays and site constraints, Dr. Salhadar saw his first patient in the new building on November 5th, exactly as planned. The final project met all clinical needs—including eight hygiene rooms and six doctor treatment rooms—and finished under the original budget, excluding owner-requested betterments for the tenant suites. The new facility solves the immediate need for space while providing the infrastructure for Dr. Salhadar to bring on a partner and continue growing his practice for years to come.

“Working with First Companies was an incredible experience from start to finish. They made the entire process of building our dental office smooth, transparent, and genuinely enjoyable. Ryan and Bill went above and beyond at every step, and what started as a professional relationship quickly turned into a true partnership. The quality, communication, and care they brought to this project exceeded our expectations, and we could not be happier with the final result.”