Roofers & Waterproofers, Local #11

Roofers & Waterproofers, Local #11

Roofers & Waterproofers, Local #11 operates as a Taft-Hartley multi-employer pension fund headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois. The fund pools contributions from signatory roofing and waterproofing contractors across the Chicago metropolitan area and southern Wisconsin, providing retirement security for union members whose working careers are tied to the region's commercial construction cycle. Business Manager Gary Menzel has led the local's labor and benefits operations through multiple negotiating cycles, and the fund's board includes both union and contractor representatives — a governance model that shapes every allocation decision. The fund runs a conservative, cash-flow-focused portfolio centered on direct investment in industrial and commercial real estate. Its largest single asset is the Kruse Martini Office Center at its own Oak Brook headquarters, alongside purpose-built training facilities in Illinois and Wisconsin that serve as both operational union assets and income-producing property. Beyond real estate, the fund accesses private markets through common and collective trusts, a structure typical of Taft-Hartley plans seeking buyout exposure without building internal direct-investment teams. Asset-class coverage includes commercial real estate, private credit, and infrastructure — with a strong geographic concentration in the Midwest, particularly Illinois and southern Wisconsin. Total asset size is not publicly disclosed, consistent with most union pension plans that report only to the Department of Labor. The fund maintains operational proximity to its contractor base through the Chicagoland Roofing Council, a labor-management partnership that coordinates training standards and industry advocacy. Philanthropic activity runs through Dollars Against Diabetes (D.A.D.'s Day), an annual charitable event that reflects the fund's deep local roots. In recent years, the fund has benefited from a multi-employer pension reform environment that has stabilized withdrawal-liability dynamics for building-trades plans still in the green zone. The fund's structural position is distinct: it is one of the few building-trades pension plans with a wholly owned office building generating direct rental income alongside its training-center real estate. This owner-occupier model creates a built-in alignment between the fund's real-asset strategy and the union's operational needs — a closed loop that most multi-employer plans do not replicate. The joint-trustee governance structure also means every investment decision must satisfy both labor and management appointees, enforcing a discipline toward steady, observable returns over speculative allocations.