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Outstate Michigan Trowel Trades Pension Fund
The Outstate Michigan Trowel Trades Pension Fund was founded in 1972 as a defined benefit plan serving members of the Operative Plasterers' and Cement Masons'...
Outstate Michigan Trowel Trades Pension Fund
The Outstate Michigan Trowel Trades Pension Fund was founded in 1972 as a defined benefit plan serving members of the Operative Plasterers' and Cement Masons' International Association and the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers. Board leadership arises jointly from organized labor and the employer contracting community — Glenn Bukoski represents the Michigan Infrastructure and Transportation Association as Chairman, and Michael Stanfield serves as Secretary alongside union and employer trustees. Allocation extends across buyout vehicles, fund-of-funds, and secondaries, with an observable tilt toward real assets. Publicly identifiable portfolio assets include a stake in RREEF America REIT II, a diversified commitment to Entrust Capital Diversified, and a direct commercial property at 6525 Centurion Drive in Lansing. Short-term cash is held through Comerica Bank’s institutional investment fund, reflecting a Michigan-anchored liquidity sleeve. The fund’s trustee count stands at four identified individuals, with additional fiduciaries drawn through union locals and employer associations such as the Michigan Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America and the Michigan Road Builders Association. Key contributing employers include Earley and Associates, Fessler & Bowman, and Major Cement Co. The fund participates in the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, a standard for multiemployer benefits administration, and maintains ties to the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council. What distinguishes this small multiemployer plan is its tightly bounded governance — every trustee appointment routes through union locals or employer associations tied to Michigan infrastructure and commercial building. There is no external investment office, no fast-track private credit mandate, and no co-investor club layering. The plan’s posture is a controlled, trustee-directed allocation stream into secondary-market real estate and diversified private equity commitments.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Year founded
1972
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Lansing
Corporate office
Lansing, MI, United States
Principals
Glenn Bukoski
Chairman of the Board of Trustees
Michael Stanfield
Secretary of the Board of Trustees
Paul Dunford
Trustee
Chuck Kukawka
Trustee
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at the Outstate Michigan Trowel Trades Pension Fund?
Investment oversight sits with the Board of Trustees. Glenn Bukoski chairs the board as the representative of the Michigan Infrastructure and Transportation Association, and Michael Stanfield serves as Secretary. Union-side trustees include Paul Dunford of OPCMIA Local 514 and Chuck Kukawka representing the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers. The board structure is defined by the collective bargaining agreements that govern the multiemployer plan.
How is the fund structured, and which unions participate?
It is a defined benefit multiemployer pension plan, jointly trusteed by representatives of participating unions and contributing employer associations. Union participants come primarily from the Operative Plasterers' and Cement Masons' International Association locals and the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers. Employer trustees are appointed by Michigan construction associations, including MITA, AGC of Michigan, and the Michigan Road Builders Association.
Does the fund invest directly or through external managers?
The portfolio mixes direct real estate ownership — such as the Fund Office Building on Centurion Drive in Lansing — with commitments to third-party private equity and real asset vehicles. Identified manager relationships include RREEF America REIT II and Entrust Capital Diversified, suggesting a fund-of-funds and commingled-vehicle orientation rather than a standalone direct-investment platform.
Which employers contribute to the plan?
Contributing employers are construction firms bound by collective bargaining agreements with the participating unions. Three of the largest contributing employers are Earley and Associates, Fessler & Bowman, and Major Cement Co. The employer associations MITA, AGC of Michigan, and the Michigan Road Builders Association also appoint trustees and shape the fund’s governance.
What is the fund’s relationship to Michigan’s broader construction labor landscape?
The fund is embedded in Michigan’s unionized building trades infrastructure. It maintains ties with the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council, which coordinates construction unions statewide, and participates in the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, a standard professional network for multiemployer benefit funds. These connections anchor the plan’s governance rather than drive investment sourcing.
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