The headline is old but the story is worth telling again.

AS A CHILD in the first Hispanic family on his North Mascher block, Luis Torrado had to street fight to end the ethnic taunts from neighbor kids and gain their respect. As the owner of now 24 years young, Torrado Construction, his fight is his passion, hiring locally to grow his community.

Torrado Construction is a minority certified contractor with more than 50 percent minority employees lending a hand to fulfill Torrado’s quest to break ethnic barriers and give back to a city that he calls home. He is proud of his diverse staff, sighting tall accomplishments such as work done on the Comcast Towers, the rebuild of the Gallery at Market East, the installation of huge stainless-steel doors in City Hall for the Pope’s visit, and currently the new Police Headquarters on North Broad. When pressed, however, Torrado recalls one of his favorite projects in the concrete and masonry work done for the Taller Puertorriqueño Organization in West Kensington.

Taller Puertorriqueño engages the public in dynamic discussions that stimulate the mind, create opportunities and make connections between people and communities with its socially conscious programs and events. The 2016 opening of the 24,000+ square-foot, The Heart Cultural Center, not only solidified Taller’s position as Pennsylvania’s largest Latino arts organization, the work also mirrored Torrado’s mission to fight for the love of community thru hard work, education, and diversity.

#TallerPR
@TallerPR

With his diverse crew and extensive experience working with the City of Philadelphia, Torrado has his sights on a new city-wide initiative appropriately called Rebuild Philadelphia. Their mission perfectly aligns with Tornado’s … to build stronger communities, one park, one recreation center, one library at a time.

#‎RebuildPHL
@CityOfPhiladelphia

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Torrado has spent over 20 years partnering on city projects including the masonry and stonework for Dilworth Park at City Hall, Gorgas Park in Roxborough, and GC on The Athletic Pool at 26^th and Master to name just a few.

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