🇮🇹 1920s–1940s: Building Foundations in Italy
- 1920s: Antonio Di Battista, a World War I veteran, founded Di Battista Construction in Abruzzi, Italy. The business began with residential housing projects and expanded to infrastructure work, including bridge and road construction.
- 1930s: The company entered the aggregates business, operating gravel pits and crushing equipment to supply materials for government and private projects.
- Antonio launched Autoservizi Di Battista, providing transportation for construction materials, mail, and passengers across Italy, starting in the Abruzzi region. Today, this legacy continues as Di Battista Bus Lines, which operates routes throughout Italy.
- Began tile manufacturing, producing ceramic tiles to meet construction demands and integrating building materials into the company’s operations.
- 1940s: As WWII engulfed Europe, Antonio’s thriving business in Italy faced devastating upheaval. Under German occupation, the military seized all company assets—including trucks and construction equipment—at gunpoint to support their war effort. Forced to surrender his life’s work, Antonio endured unimaginable hardship. Yet, with resilience and determination, he survived the war and rebuilt the business from the ground up, restoring its success in post-war Italy.
🌎 1950s–1960s: New Horizons in Canada
- 1959: Romeo Di Battista Sr. immigrated to Canada at age 20 and began working at Swansea Construction in Toronto.
- Identified a shortage of skilled tower crane operators, brought the first tower crane to Canada, and trained as an operator. He worked on infrastructure and commercial projects across Ontario.
- Founded Cimor Forming Ltd., a concrete forming company that undertook significant commercial and infrastructure projects across the province.
🧀 1970s–1980s: Diversification into Food and Real Estate
- 1974: Constructed three apartment buildings in the Cawthra-Lakeshore area, marking the beginning of a series of real estate developments in Canada.
- 1977: Romeo Sr. invested $250,000 for a 50% stake in the then-struggling Mastro Foods. Leveraging his capital and business acumen, he helped revitalize and scale the company, driving double-digit growth throughout the following decade. Mastro became a leader in Italian meat processing, introducing dry-cured meats, specialty oils, and pastas to the Canadian market.
- 1982–83: Established Carolina Cheese Manufacturing, securing cheese quotas for Italian-style products in Canada.
- 1986–87: Launched Designs of Italy, importing high-end Italian furniture.
- Profits from the operating businesses generated strong cash flows, which were strategically reinvested to acquire commercial and industrial real estate during market downturns, laying the foundation for a long-term property portfolio.
🏗 1980s–1990s: Expansion, Strategic Rescue, and Business Transitions
- In 1998, amid a challenging period in the construction sector, Romeo Sr. invested $5 million to stabilize Avenue Structures, a leading concrete forming company in financial distress. The business was restructured under the name Canforming before returning to its original identity as Avenue Building Corporation. Romeo Sr. later exited the investment, selling his stake to the company’s longtime partners, led by the late Carmen Patullo.
- Through their strategic relationship, Cimor Forming Ltd. and Avenue Structures contributed to the development of several high-profile Ontario landmarks, including:
- Pearson International Airport (Terminal 3)
- Rogers Centre (SkyDome)
- Mel Lastman Square
- Windsor Casino
📻 1980s–1990s: Media Investments
- 1980s–1990s: Invested in TLN (Telelatino Network) alongside Joe Vitale and Italo Rosati. TLN grew into Canada’s leading multicultural media platform, serving Italian and Spanish-speaking audiences through channels like TLN TV, Univision Canada, and Mediaset Italia Canada, and producing culturally resonant, CRTC-regulated content.
- Increased ownership stake in TLN over time and later sold controlling interests to Corus Entertainment, before reacquiring back stakes during Corus’ restructuring in 2018.
- 1996–1997: Sold the concrete forming business to a long-time partner and sold Mastro Foods to a Chicago-based private equity firm.
🏢 2000s: Environmental Ventures, Real Estate, and Capital Markets
- Launched Casa Italia, continuing the family’s involvement in food manufacturing. While operations were later sold, the family retained ownership of the production facility as part of its real estate holdings.
- Entered environmental remediation, acquiring insolvent industrial properties, addressing legacy environmental issues, and operating gravel pits & clean-fill sites.
- Invested in various private and public companies, including Rom-Neg Construction Inc., a contracting and earth-moving company later acquired in 2004 by Environmental Management Solutions Inc. (TSX: EMS), a Canadian public company offering environmental remediation and services.
- Purchased the Dominion Bridge steel plant, partnering with the Marco Muzzo to redevelop it into a 550-home residential community through Touchstone Homes.
- Co-developed the Rain and Senses condominium project in Oakville, ON, in partnership with Empire Communities. The development comprised 532 residential suites with retail space on the ground floor, contributing to the area’s urban revitalization.
🏢 2010–2020: Laying the Groundwork for the Next Chapter
- Through Westmount Park Investments, the Di Battista family expanded into new sectors and laid the foundation for future platform investments.
- Casa Italia (Early 2010s): Continued food operations before exiting the business. The family retained the real estate holdings, including the Brampton production facility.
- Environmental Real Estate: Acquired and remediated brownfield industrial properties; operated gravel pits and clean-fill sites throughout Ontario.
- Maple Waste Services (2018–Present): Entered the waste management and environmental services sector through strategic investments in licensed landfill, transfer station, gravel, and clean-fill site facilities across Ontario. These operations are consolidated under Maple Waste Services, which holds the required environmental permits and serves industrial, commercial, and residential clients throughout the province.
- WBE Exhibits (2019–Present): Invested in WBE Exhibits, a trade show and event services company headquartered in Denver, CO. Westmount Park also invested in Guru House, a brand activation and experiential marketing agency, that was consolidated with WBE Exhibits under the Cupola Group.
- Gryphon Advisors (Sold 2021): Acquired and sold Gryphon Advisors, a leading Canadian proxy solicitation and governance advisory firm known for its involvement in both friendly and hostile shareholder situations, to Morrow Sodali (Canada) Ltd., expanding the global shareholder advisory platform.
🏢 2020–Present: Platform Growth and Strategic Focus
- Highside Developments (2021–Present): Acquired a controlling interest in Highside, a real estate development platform focused on extended-stay hospitality, industrial, and self-storage.
- Elevate Service Group (2025–Present): Acquired Elevate Service Group Inc., a facility maintenance and commercial services platform delivering integrated electrical, plumbing, repair, and design-build solutions, targeting large national clients across hospitality, retail, and commercial real estate sectors.
