Builder Paul Lydig Dies Of Heart Attack
Paul Lydig, a Spokane builder of hundreds of Northwest schools, shopping centers and factories, died in his sleep Tuesday of a heart attack.
Services for Mr. Lydig, 64, will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday in the Empire Ballroom of the Ridpath Hotel. Private inurnment will be at Wild Rose Cemetery.
At the time of Mr. Lydig’s death, Lydig Construction Co. had completed more than 900 projects, including the massive Harper’s Furniture factory in Post Falls, NorthPointe Plaza and the Husky Stadium grandstands in Seattle.
Projects currently under construction include the 126,000-square-foot J.C. Penney store at the Spokane Valley Mall and the sprawling Mount Spokane High School on Peone Prairie.
Lydig Construction, with about 200 employees and $80 million in annual revenue, is the largest general contractor in the Inland Northwest.
“The most fun in his life was when he was working in construction,” said Doug Lydig, one of three children who survived Mr. Lydig. “He spent a lot of time to become successful.”
Lydig Construction has not named a successor to Mr. Lydig, president of the company, said Doug Lydig, co-owner of the Fore Seasons Sports Dome in the Valley. Mr. Lydig’s son, Russ Lydig of Renton, Wash., is project manager for the company’s Bellevue office.
Described as a man with compassion for everything but the family dogs, Mr. Lydig bought ocean cruises for office workers and once footed the bill for 50 employees to join him salmon fishing near the San Juan Islands.
His wife of 43 years, Janet Lydig, said Mr. Lydig also had a weakness for needy people. The former Marine would give away money without telling his wife and enjoyed taking Morning Star Boys Ranch kids water-skiing at the couple’s Priest Lake cabin.
“He didn’t like to toot his own horn,” Mrs. Lydig said.
Mr. Lydig graduated from North Central High School in 1950 and fought in the Korean War. In 1956, Sceva Construction hired him as an engineer estimator. He later formed a construction firm with Emmett Nelson and bought out his partner in 1973 to create Lydig Construction.
Other buildings constructed by Mr. Lydig’s company were Cavanaugh’s Inn at the Park, the Boeing factory in Airway Heights, Deaconess Women’s & Children’s Center, the Spokane Transit Authority headquarters and the Palouse Empire Mall in Moscow, Idaho.
Mr. Lydig was a member of The Spokane Club, the Spokane Country Club and the Prosperity Club and was past president of the Inland Empire Chapter of the Associated General Contractors.
He is survived also by his daughter, Sharon Urlacher, a Spokane schoolteacher; a brother, Dean Lydig, a Spokane member of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission; and six grandchildren.
The family has asked that memorial contributions be made to the Wishing Star Foundation. Hennessey-Smith Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo