Building the Integrity of a City
Boutique constructor, Promondo, thrives in Seattle’s downtown
Seattle, built on the isthmus between the Puget Sound and Lake Washington, has long been one of the nation’s largest metropolitan and cultural hubs for good reason. The city has evolved through a bounty of industries: from logging and shipbuilding to a major trade seaport to one that is now home to ecosystems of software giants and internet companies, with their communities in tow. Continuous economic revival, coupled with Seattle’s natural beauty, cultural draw and some of the highest minimum wages in the country, have led to unprecedented growth. Today, a fast-growing population of 3.87 million calls Greater Seattle home; and what was once a sleepy seaport city has turned into a thriving metropolis.
While Seattle has outgrown expectations, the unexpected climb in population has led to increased vertical expansion and a complexity of commercial and residential projects downtown that few construction companies are willing to take on. The task of navigating and negotiating pedestrians, busy avenues, traffic and tight spaces, with few areas to park and unload, presents a whole new level of problem-solving that may be a headache to some; but for Promondo, it’s the company’s bread and butter.
Why has this boutique construction firm embraced the challenges unique to downtown Seattle? Because brothers and co-owners Joe and Matt “Mateo” Monda grew up there, have strong ties to the community and want to build the future and integrity of this great city.
“There’s not a lot of open space left in this area,” Matt says. “Seattle is locked in by water on two sides, and the entire city is a mile and a half in length. There used to be a commercial billboard campaign in the 1970s that read, ‘Will the last person leaving Seattle—turn out the lights.’ This city has certainly changed since then. We’ve always had Boeing, and then Microsoft came in, then Facebook, Google and Amazon. It’s insane how Seattle has grown.”
“It’s like San Francisco,” Joe adds. “Young people are coming in and buying million-dollar condos, and there’s huge demand for updating 10-year-old units. There’s so much construction going on, companies that were medium-sized 10 years ago have grown and are working on larger projects and standalone buildings. While there’s a vacuum for small- to midsized companies, and huge demand for smaller-end projects, there’s also a labor shortage, because most people are working on these high-rises.”
Downtown Specialists
“Our goal has been to keep projects small,” Matt continues. “The bigger the job, the bigger the headache. Seattle has changed enormously and the real estate market has gone through the roof. Downtown used to be sleepy, but now it takes 45 minutes to drive into or out of it because of gridlock and construction.”
In many ways, Seattle is a microcosm of the country. There’s opportunity around every corner as well as vast economic disparity. The city that is home to billionaire entrepreneurs is also home to a growing homeless population. You could say this is a city in transition.
“We do what we can do,” Matt says. “We’ve given people opportunities to be on this team and we work with them to better their lives [so they can] get their own places someday.”
Joe and Matt have seen it all firsthand from the ground up—the growth, the economy steadily climbing, the changes and influx of newcomers and billion-dollar companies revamping the landscape, rebuilding Seattle, refueling its growth year after year. This trend has compounded the complexity of building downtown. Sometimes team members have to park two or three blocks away for a job, but they’re willing to do whatever it takes because they feel they’ve figured out the logistics better than anyone. It’s fair to say they are experts on the challenges of navigating downtown Seattle.
“We’ve adapted to the clientele,” Matt says, “and offer them what they want on a silver platter. We’ve seen different companies come in and try to do home services, but with them you don’t know what you’re going to get. With Promondo, we believe that together everyone achieves more. We all wear the same uniform and we’re all focused on achieving the same goal. We have a small select team of employees, backed by an administrative staff, and we work with subcontractors to supply the best possible experience for our clients.”
The Promondo Way
Promondo’s tagline, “Call us—we’re always downtown,” is an invitation, an extension of a mindset that reflects the value of working in a place it calls home. For this team, every job is meaningful; and the owners affirm that when you hire their team, you’re working with professionals who show up on time, in uniform and who behave by a protocol that reflects the character of this company and the gratitude and expertise of Seattleites Joe and Matt.
“Our guys are proud to wear the Promondo uniform,” Matt says. “We do things the Promondo way to keep clients happy and have the same pride we have in our own homes.”
For a company that was formed and grew after the recession of 2008, Joe and Matt ensure that they pursue projects that make Promondo recession-proof, including residential remodels, commercial tenant improvements and custom build-outs and maintenance.
“We’ve diversified to be recession-proof,” Joe says. “We’ve done maintenance and commercial work and try to keep our guys working all the time.”
“Even if it’s not high end, we want it done right,” Matt says. “We work with architecture firms across the city. We want all of our finishes to be right. It doesn’t take that much longer to do something right the first time.”
Instilling a Sense of Ownership
Clearly, the Promondo way means being focused on doing what it takes to be a leader in construction in the greater Seattle area. It also means instilling pride of ownership within the team and doing projects that other companies simply won’t take.
“We do punch lists in new buildings where general contractors have gone through and say that they’re done,” Matt says. “And we’ve been able to take care of items that they’re too busy to finish, which has led to new relationships and new projects. We’re willing to take on some of the dirty work others won’t.”
For the Promondo team, hard work and a focus on quality—no matter how large or small the job—is an element of the owners’ business plan. It’s been said that how you do anything is how you do everything. Joe and Matt say there is an awareness and sense of pride in each job this team performs and that they use each job as a platform for instilling personal excellence and growth—all to build up a city that they know and love.