Haralambos Tsivicos, pictured center in black holding the nozzle, applying shotcrete in the bowl of the new Berry Lane Skatepark built for the City of Jersey City with a grant from the Tony Hawk Foundation. Construction started in the fall of 2019 and was completed in August of 2020. 

When many think of the effect the global COVID-19 pandemic has had on their everyday lives, they often think of lockdowns, masks, and quarantine. Despite this mainstream perception, a core group of essential businesses have been charged with braving the storm through it all to keep delivering the products, services, and facilities we have grown to depend on. At the helm of one of these essential businesses is Haralambos Tsivicos. A young entrepreneur based out of New Jersey, he has been dedicating himself to building essential recreational facilities during the course of the pandemic.

During the course of this unprecedented time, we have all had a moment to reflect on what's important to us. One thing that rings loudly is the value of community. For many of us, our ability to go outside and experience nature and recreation in a safe and socially distant manner, alongside our community members, stands as one of the few silver linings we continue to look forward to. It is for this reason that politicians in New Jersey have continued to drive progress in new recreation facilities even in the heart of the lockdown. Haralambos' company, Tsivicos Enterprises, was one of the most active contractors in the state working to complete high-profile recreation projects when many other businesses were shuttered. Haralambos shares with us how he found himself there and what kept him motivated during such a challenging time.

Haralambos studied Nuclear Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He eventually graduated with his degree in Applied Sciences Engineering from Rutgers University. While he was in college, he dedicated most of his free time to working on his inventions and startup ideas. In 2008, when he was studying in Wisconsin, he had a eureka moment while watching the classes change one day. He envisioned a system that could generate electricity when people open doors in some of the highest traffic buildings in the world. He wouldn't lose sight of his vision, filing for patents for his invention. Years later, in 2015 and 2016, he was granted two patents for his green energy technology. When he reflects on the struggle of trying to bring such a big idea to market with his own funding, he remarks,"They call it bootstrapping for a reason." A couple years out of college and running out of funding, he turned to a business he had spent a life mastering working for his family, government contracting. He knew with hard work, he could generate the funding he needed to continue developing his ideas while leaving a profound impact on local communities. He began working toward building Tsivicos Enterprises into a statewide powerhouse, fueled by his passion to be free to continue to invest in his ideas and his dreams.

Tsivicos Enterprises grew rapidly, and in the Spring of 2020, the company had three very large projects on the books. With the projects shut down for the winter, Haralambos traveled to Melbourne, Australia, to play the Aussie Millions poker tournament and visit family. He visited several countries throughout Asia on his way to Melbourne, and he says he certainly never could expect what would await him on his return to the USA. As soon as he arrived back in the states in late February, work started on all the projects. Shortly after that, the global lockdown was initiated to attempt to stop the spread. Everything became more difficult for him than he could have ever imagined. The politicians never relented on the pressure to complete the projects on time, as the importance of the community always stood first, but everything required to complete the projects became exponentially more challenging.

From purchasing supplies to getting inspections from the building department, everything was operating in a way it never had before. Inspectors were either laid off or only available on certain days, and many supply houses were closed or on limited hours. Everything he had grown accustomed to rely on in the completion of his projects became a huge challenge, yet the pressure to finish remained. When he looks back on it, he says it was one of the most challenging times of his entire life. He says it was like putting the pieces of a puzzle together knowing you were missing half of them, and having to do it fast. What kept him going through it all was the thought of what these projects meant to the local communities. He knew just by looking around him that these beautiful outdoor recreational facilities he was building were exactly what people needed to help get them through this trying time.

By August of 2020, he had completed all three of the projects he was working on. A complete renovation to the historic train station at the infamous Turtle Back Zoo opened on July 29, 2020. The project was contracted with the County of Essex to beautify and modernize the aging train platform, which had originally opened in the 1960s. In late 2019, Tsivicos Enterprises was awarded a Design-Build for a new 5,000 square foot spray park for a community center in Bridgewater, NJ. The new facility was designed completely in house and construction was completed on August 1, 2020. And last but not least, a new 15,000 square foot skatepark for the City of Jersey City opened to much fanfare on August 7, 2020. The park was one of the most notable completed in the Country, having won a competition to receive assistance from the Tony Hawk Foundation. Despite the major adversity, the projects were completed, and the local communities had brand new facilities to be able to enjoy while staying safe outdoors.

In January of this year, his company was awarded a contract for almost $200,000 to make critical repairs to the West New York Swim Club. He knows this facility well, because in 2016 he completed a very challenging project at the facility constructing a new spray park by repurposing the children's pool deck. The local community members look forward to this pool more than anything, and without an update, it simply won't operate properly. Starting off 2021, he and his company will be working to modernize the facility and make sure it is running perfectly to prepare for the summer, and to ensure that the members of the community have an outdoor space to safely enjoy themselves.

Through it all, he says his driving force was faith that with hard work, careful planning, and teamwork, all the projects would be completed. There is no question that it is a true silver lining to have people like Haralambos working to keep our communities alive during this challenging time. Recreational facilities are the lifeblood of our communities, there is no question that they are deeply important, now more than ever.

To learn more about Haralambos Tsivicos and Tsivicos Enterprises, Inc, you may visit their website.