We got a hot tip from a reader that some elaborate masonry work was being done on a building on the 2700 block of Frankford Ave., just below Somerset Street. Literally on the other side of the tracks from Fishtown, this building, we believe, was once housed a telephone exchange, whatever that means.

Here’s a look at what 2757 Frankford Ave. looked like a couple of years ago.

In the past

And a shot from the other day:

Getting cleaned up, big time

While we were over there snapping photos, the owner of the property happened to be out front. Matthew Proud purchased the building, along with the vacant lots next door, a couple of months ago. Proud is a masonry contractor, who does brick, stone, concrete, and stucco work. So he’s clearly a…