Felix Robert “Bob” Albarano, 75, of Duncansville, died in March at his residence. Ralph died July 11, 2025.

Bob Albarano was the on-site leader for the business and played a vital role in every project, according to Andrea Cohen, president of Blair Companies Real Estate and Lakemont Park.

“While Ralph was more of the public face of the business, Bob was the person business owners trusted with the details that mattered on the job site,” Cohen said. “Any business owner who worked with Albarano likely worked closely with Bob.”

She said he was a “true construction expert,” who was committed to quality and always made sure the company met the highest of standards in its work.

Albarano

Marty Marasco, retired president/CEO of Altoona Blair County Development Corporation, said he knew Bob through his association with Ralph.

“He was usually the lead person on a lot of their construction projects. He was an outstanding individual, but he probably was not as well-known in the community as Ralph,” Marasco said.

Construction of the Blair County Ballpark (now Peoples Natural Gas Field) and the neighboring parking garage for the Altoona Circle were among the Albarano brothers’ greatest accomplishments.

One of Albarano’s personal favorite projects was Lights on the Lake at Lakemont Park, where he partnered with then-park general manager Barry Kumpf. Their time together gave Kumpf the opportunity to get to know Albarano on a more personal level.

“He wanted everyone to think he was an SOB, but he was one of the kindest, gentlest men I had ever known,” Kumpf said.

Initially, Albarano didn’t think the park would be able to handle development for Lights on the Lake because it would take away time from maintenance on the rides, but Kumpf convinced him that park staff would be able to handle it.

“It was his baby. He loved that show,” Kumpf said. “He would be there until 10 or 11 o’clock every night.”

The first Lights on the Lake opened on Thanksgiving 1997, Kumpf recalled.

On Thanksgiving eve, the crew was working on the Three French Hens lights.

Kumpf said Albarano looked at him and said: “Barry, if you told me that on the day before Thanksgiving I would’ve been screwing a lightbulb into a chicken’s ass, I would have never believed it.”

Kumpf said Albarano was very talented.

“I always called him the McGyver of Lakemont Park. You could give him a match stick, paper clip and chewing gum and he could build a bomb. He could do anything, he was so talented,” Kumpf said.

Albarano was known for his knowledge of the construction industry.

Denny DeGol, COO of the DeGol Organization, said Albarano was the most knowledgeable person he ever met in construction. He knew details from the foundation, to the HVAC, to the plumbing.

“He was the superintendent at all of their jobs. He did it all very well and he did it right,” DeGol said. “He was very dependable and very punctual.”

“He certainly had a great understanding of the construction industry in how a building was to be built. He wanted it done the right way, he wanted the job to be top quality,” said President Michael Kranich Jr. of Kranich’s Jewelers.

Albarano played a key role in the company business, said Jim Brown, owner of J.R. Brown Construction, Hollidaysburg.

“Much of the success of the Albarano construction firm is attributable to Bob’s inclusion in the business. You rarely reach that level of success without the dedication and hard work of key staff, or in this case, family. As it is often hard to share the spotlight, Ralph could have been the face of the company, with Bob’s hands-on work being just as important,” Brown said.

John Horell, owner of Horell’s Painting and Wallcovering, Altoona, said he worked for the Albaranos for 35 years.

“I went into business in 1989 for myself and went to see Ralph and Bob to see if I could do work for them. I have done all of the painting for them for the last 35 years, until they went out of business,” Horell said. “Bob was a nice guy, (who) would do anything for you. He was an engineer, he could coordinate a job like nobody else.”

Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 814-946-7467.