Prolific Toronto homebuilder Angelo DelZotto of the Tridel Group is being remembered as a man of deep humility and integrity who spearheaded the expansion of the family empire and put together landmark deals that helped create today’s modern city.
DelZotto, who died July 31 at the age of 89, never forgot his roots as a bricklayer.
He left school and a promising hockey career early and at age 19 began building single family homes alongside his Italian immigrant father Jack. Angelo would lead his younger brothers Leo and Elvio as they rode waves of growth, first developing whole communities of single-family homes that housed a generation of Torontonians then establishing himself as the “king of condos,” as developer Christopher Bratty recently called him.
Angelo’s first apartment complex, circa 1961, featured amenities that were rare for the era, including twin towers, a swimming pool, a recreation centre and beautifully landscaped grounds. It signalled his arrival as an innovator. At last count Tridel has built over 100,000 homes.
Isadore Sharp, who would later found the Four Seasons Resorts and Hotels chain, first met Angelo DelZotto at the age of 11; they both attended West Prep school and played all the sports together.
“He was much more mature than the rest of us,” Sharp commented recently. “He was an adult, he knew what he wanted to do and he set out to do it and became a master builder.”
Both Sharp and DelZotto were first-generation Canadians, the DelZottos from Italy and the Sharps Jews from Poland, and their experiences as new Canadians informed their future careers.
“We were always respectful of our parents,” he said. “They were hardworking, good people.
“It is a fortunate upbringing, when you’re brought up in an immigrant household. The values they have are not spoken, they are understood emotionally. So as a child growing up, it is a great inheritance to have values that your parents gave you by their actions. That is how Angelo became who he is.”
DelZotto Construction became Tridel in the 1970s with numerous divisions eventually created and a fourth partner, Harvey Fruitman, brought in. Today the workforce numbers some 500 employees.
“Angelo was the driving force,” Sharp remarked, commenting on their loyalty. “That shows the true mettle of the man, when people look up to you with such admiration. He was a friend to many people.
“And he was very humble. He didn’t flaunt his success, this was what he set out to do and he never made a big deal of being so successful.”
When a person has certain basic values, such as integrity and honesty, Sharp said, they are reflected in everything they do.
“He was a fair sportsman,” noted the former teammate. “He played by the rules.”
In contrast to Sharp, Avi Tesciuba, senior managing director at Hines Canada, knew Angelo DelZotto mainly by reputation when Hines began exploring a possible partnership with Tridel a decade ago. The U.S.-based firm did its due diligence researching Tridel as it got set to embark on the Bayside project on Toronto’s waterfront and found a spotless record of customer satisfaction.
“They have been very diligent about managing their reputation and they really stood up for what they built,” said Tesciuba.
By then, Angelo worked more in the background but the firm remains infused with his values, Tesciuba said.
“The legacy of great leaders is that what they embody gets transmitted to everyone who works around them,” he remarked. “Everyone knew they were accountable to the three brothers and Angelo as their leader.
“Their reputation of doing what they said they would do was important. The three brothers were the same generation as our founder Gerry Hines and there was a strong sense of ethics and responsibility.”
Tridel, which under Angelo DelZotto pioneered the “flying form” building technique with cranes lifting premanufactured panels to enable faster progress on highrises, is also known for innovation and sustainable building, Tesciuba said. That was important to his firm given they had LEED Platinum aspirations at Bayside.
The DelZottos declined to be interviewed in the wake of the death of Angelo but Tridel posted a video tribute to its chairman emeritus upon his death in which brother Elvio comments that Angelo’s willingness to take risks changed the industry.
“Anytime there was a good new idea he would try it,” said Elvio. “He would do things other people would never think of doing.”
George Brown College president Anne Sado said the college is indebted to Tridel and the family for its donation to establish the Angelo DelZotto School of Construction Management.
Sado sat with Angelo DelZotto several times at fundraising events for Tridel’s BOLT charitable foundation, which supports scholarships for students in need of assistance or who are at risk.
“He made a point of speaking to as many people as possible,” she said of the casino nights and golf fundraisers. “He was gracious and genuine. He really took the time to connect with people.”
The association with the former bricklayer was a perfect fit for the college in its endeavours to boost the construction trades, Sado said.
“I think it is important when you think of trades and all levels of people who work in the construction industry, he showed respect for everybody and he showed the value of working with your hands,” she explained. “Everyone was important including the people doing the hard labour. It was important they were appreciated.”
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Passing of a giant! I did a joint venture with Tridel, the Polo Club. Excellent partners. Angelo stayed in the background on that one but his presence was felt in the negotiations. We never looked back; the deal was the deal and it was executed as promised. I was a minor player in the industry at the time, but with Angelo as the guiding light, success was assumed and proved to be assured. There are few in the industry with that talent and integrity combined in one individual. He will be fondly remembered by my family. Bill