Linda G. Alvarado has changed the “male only” image of construction contractors across the United States and opened doors for women to enter construction and non-traditional fields of endeavor. Alvarado is founder and sole owner of Alvarado Construction, a commercial general contractor, construction management and design/build firm in Denver, Colorado; President of Palo Alto Inc., and co-owner of the Colorado Rockies Baseball Club.
Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Alvarado grew up poor in a family with six children. Working her way through college she earned money as a laborer for a landscape firm, later taking courses in estimating and computerized scheduling and began as a contract administrator on a construction project. Undaunted by construction site harassment she experienced being a woman, in 1976 she started her own company. There were no programs to include women or minority-owned businesses and banks viewed this “woman contractor” as a high risk. Her parents mortgaged their small home and lent her $2,500 to start one of the most successful construction firms in the country; starting with concrete sidewalks to bus-stop shelters, schools, stadiums, convention centers, aquariums, hotels, and high-rise buildings.
In 1992 Alvarado made history as the first Latino owner of a Major League Baseball team, the Colorado Rockies. This also marked the first time a woman was in a bid for ownership of a major league franchise. Alvarado and her husband, Robert, founded Palo Alto Inc. which operates 150 franchise restaurants.
At the young age of 27 Alvarado was invited to join the board of United Bank and today serves on the board of five public companies. She sets high standards as a successful business owner and her accomplishments have created opportunity for women. Alvarado has given numerous speeches at business conferences and at schools, motivating youth to excel and achieve their dreams.
Alvarado has been honored as one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics in America” by Hispanic Business Magazine. She is a recipient of the Horatio Alger Award, the Sara Lee Front Runner Award and was voted American Latino T.V. Network’s “Most Inspiring American Latino”.
