Washington’s Master Craftsmen in Building Envelope Restoration
About Us
The Seattle area office has served customers throughout Washington and Oregon since 1995.
Western Specialty Contractors helps you take the guesswork out of building envelope maintenance and repairs in a way that lets you provide more value to your clients.
Since the company was founded in 1915 as a small waterproofing contractor in St. Louis, MO, Western has stood by dedication to quality craftsmanship.
Family-owned, the company has evolved to become America’s largest specialty contractor in masonry, concrete, waterproofing and facades restoration.
Services
Sealant Replacement
Got leaks? Water intrusion is more than an inconvenience for property owners and tenants. Left unchecked, it can damage structural elements and shorten the useful life of buildings, parking garages, and plaza decks.
Masonry Restoration
The materials that give masonry structures their character and beauty are vulnerable to age, moisture, pollutants, building movement, and deferred maintenance.
Parking Garage Restoration
An ineffective maintenance routine on a parking structure can quickly lead to costly repairs and restorations that can be disruptive to tenants and cause unexpected costs and safety concerns.
Waterproofing & Coatings
From below grade waterproofing to deck coatings to roof coatings, any waterproofing system is only as effective as the caliber of installation.
Concrete Restoration
Concrete is economical and durable — the backbone of modern construction. But time, water, and weather take their toll and diminish its strength.
Historical Restoration
We can restore the exterior features regardless of composition or age without damaging either the building or its historical charm.
Kittitas Jail | Ellensburg, WA
Western Specialty Contractors’ Seattle branch restored the Kittitas County Jail in Ellensburg, Washington. Located at 205 W 5th Ave, the Kittitas County Jail is operated by the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office and serves as a detention center for individuals awaiting trial or serving short sentences. The jail was built in the 1980s to house about 45 inmates. In 2012, the Annex was completed, which significantly increased its total capacity to 209. The Kittitas Jail restoration project, started in May 2025, encompassed a broad range of structural and aesthetic improvements. General contractor Belsaas & Smith hired Western Specialty Contractors to perform the jail’s exterior work, which included application of exterior sealants, epoxy injections, and concrete repairs. The exterior work was accessed by manlifts and scaffolding while protecting the surrounding landscape. Western’s crew removed and replaced expansion joints and rustication joints using a DOW 790 silicone sealant. Small cracks were injected with…
1300 University | Seattle, WA
Western Specialty Contractors’ Seattle branch has completed a major restoration and waterproofing project at 1300 University, a multi-family residential property owned and managed by CWD Group. The project, which began on June 17, 2025, and concluded on October 4, 2025, was performed under the direction of Walker Consultants and focused on improving the building’s long-term structural performance and water protection. The project began with extensive surface preparation, including the removal of existing deck coatings, tile, and wood overlays. Crews used swing stages to access elevated areas and conducted thorough grinding and cleaning of substrates to ensure proper bonding of repair materials. Concrete restoration was completed across floors, slab edges, balcony posts, ceilings, beams, and joists by removing deteriorated concrete, treating reinforcing steel, applying repair mortar, and installing new reinforcement where needed to restore structural stability. To address moisture intrusion, Western performed crack routing and sealing, joint sealant replacement, and chemical grout injection using…
Parking Structure Inspection Guide
Maintaining multi-million-dollar parking garages can be a daunting task for building owners and their facility managers. An ineffective maintenance routine on a parking structure can quickly lead to costly repairs and restorations that can be disruptive to tenants and cause unexpected costs and safety concerns.
Fortunately, identifying and tracking problem areas within parking structures has just become easier with Western Specialty Contractors’ new online Visual Guide & Checklist for parking garage inspections.
Caulking & Sealants Cheat Sheet
Practically every building requires caulking and sealants to prevent water from reaching interior spaces.
Caulking and sealants are not only the most commonly used waterproofing materials, but they’re also the most incorrectly used. This quick cheat sheet will help you decode any jargon you encounter for caulking and sealants.
Contact us today about your next project
Whether you’d like us to take a look at minor leak issues, provide a proposal for full capital restoration projects, or give an educational presentation that will help you and your team make your exterior maintenance more cost effective, we’d love to connect with you.