Sources: Gage Brothers Inc., Sioux Falls, S.D.; CP staff
Gage Brothers kicked off a summer-long centennial anniversary celebration on June 17 with a “Top 100 Jobs” countdown, presenting via social media channels significant projects over its 100 years in concrete, primarily architectural and structural precast. The top 10 projects will be revealed September 15-24, the latter date dovetailing the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Foundation National BBQ competition and fundraiser.
“Our centennial will celebrate our past, present and future by showcasing products, employees and very best projects,” says Gage Brothers President and 2013 PCI Chairman Tom Kelley. “Throughout the summer, we will celebrate how far Gage Brothers has come in the last century and envision what lies ahead for the company in the next 100 years.”
In 1915, former high school classmates William Gage Sr. and Harold Gable began to pour sidewalks in Sioux Falls, S.D. That foothold in concrete would serve William Gage Jr. and his brother Alfred well upon their return from Army duty in World War II. In 1946, they founded Gage Brothers Concrete and purchased the industry standard workhorse: a Besser three-at-time block machine. On the heels of the post-war boom, a third generation of family members—Tom, Fred and Al Gage, Jr.—expanded into architectural precast and staked claim in the Twin Cities market with a 1967 contract for the Minnesota North Stars’ home, Met Center.
Gage Brothers has manufactured concrete products for dozens of prominent buildings over the past 40 years, including the Target Center, Grant Park, Target Field, TCF Bank Stadium, Howard Wood Field, Sanford Children’s Castle of Care Hospital, Avera Prairie Center and the James F. Battin United States Courthouse in Billings, Mont. The producer moved into a new chapter early in the 21st century, naming Kelley president in 2001 and effecting an employee stock ownership plan six years later. “The Gage family has always held high expectations for our company embedded with values, principles and integrity,” affirms Kelley. “We will continue to lead into the next century with these goals.”