Providing excavation and grading service to residential home builders, using a Caterpillar 955 Traxcavator and single-axle dump truck, Frank provided honest prices and quality work to his clients solidifying his place in the local construction market.
With his first son, Tony here at age 2, born the same year he started his business, Frank had his family in mind from day one. Frank often brought Tony with him to work where Tony developed a lifelong passion for machinery and heavy construction equipment. Spending countless hours watching his dad form relationships with both customers and employees gave Tony an appreciation for integrity, quality and hard work. Today, Tony continues doing what he loves most, “working hard to provide the best quality of work to our customers.”
As new equipment came on the market, in 1978, Frank was one of the first in the area to make the switch from traxcavator to hydraulic excavator. Purchasing the machine of choice for residential excavation and for sites requiring soil corrections under foundations, Frank’s brand new John Deere 690B brought with it new opportunities to serve the commercial construction market.
As his company continued to grow, in 1979 Frank Frattalone incorporates the firm as F.M. Frattalone Excavating and Grading, Inc. and also introduces the first company logo.
With continued growth and the need for more office and shop space, FM Frattalone Excavating and Grading acquires a facility at 3306 Spruce Street in Little Canada.
In 1985 Frattalone began offering expanded services to its growing client base when it formed the Underground Utility Division. By providing self-performed site utility work, the team was able to enhance project delivery to better meet the needs of their clients’ and project partners.
Driving a culture of hard work, dedication and service, Frank began awarding employees with an “anniversary” ring to commemorate their tenth year of service. Arlen “Red” Richter, pictured here with Frank, was one of Frank’s first employees. Red, along with Jeff Jacobsen and Gene Hansen were the first employees to receive a 10-year anniversary ring. Red retired in 2016 after 41 years of service to the company.
In 1991, Frattalone Excavating & Grading introduces a new modernized logo to the market. The new logo features updated equipment to showcase the firm’s dedicated focus on commercial construction. The revised font and color palette represent a passion and excitement for heavy equipment bringing the firm into the new decade with strength and enthusiasm.
In 1993, the company began purchasing Peterbilt trucks for the first time, a conversion to their existing fleet that would continue for many years.
On the cold morning of Sunday, January 7th, 1996 the community gathered to watch Frattalone Excavating take down the 75 year old Montgomery Wards building and tower. The Midway structure was demolished using 1200 lbs of dynamite and was the first implosion the firm would perform.
Big changes came to downtown St Paul in the 1990s with the construction of the new Minnesota Mutual/Securian and St Paul Companies’ Headquarter buildings. Frattalone provided civil site work for both projects, helping change the landscape of Minnesota’s capital city.
The Johnson Street Quarry, in Northeast Minneapolis was an abandoned brownfield site, that with the help of Frattalone, was converted to The Quarry Shopping Center.
When you like equipment as much as we do, there is no better gift than two new CAT 627 scrapers. In 1997, these two machines were purchased to help support our growing site development work, arriving just in time for the holidays!
Frattalone partners with Stubbs Housemovers and International Chimney Corp to help relocate the heaviest structure ever moved, the 3000 ton Schubert Theatre. The theatre was moved from one city block to the next in downtown Minneapolis. Frattalone was responsible for site preparation to ensure that when the structure reached its new home, it was ready.
The new millennium brought a number of exciting changes for Frattalone Excavating and Grading. A new headquarters complex with office and maintenance shop was built and the company rebranded as Frattalone Companies, bringing all of the affiliate operations under one umbrella.
