DeCapuaDescendent

Hi Staphanger... I agree with your sentiment, too. Regarding the Club Corbo's/Golden Bowl ornate brick patio.. i guess, i was thinking too, what something like that would cost to re-create and build today. It would be very expensive. As i said, its too bad that whoever Corbo's sold that property to, didnt at least entertain the idea of retaining that beautiful brick patio and courtyard, even if the building had to be taken down. With regard to Primo Vino, yes the front has been altered but the good thing is that the facade-those large, white stony panels, are merely bolted and attached to the original building front. Id love to see what would look like, were those panels carefully unbolted and reveal the stone beneath. The 2nd story windows on the East 126th St side were long ago covered with cinder blocks.. but those could be removed, as the window spaces and sills are still there. A couple summers ago, the owner allowed me to go inside the first floor section, that is normally locked off. It had funiture and other material strewn about--it looked more like a storage ..but the room was sound and has potential. I found these pics last night.. clear shots showing the East 126th St side and how the facade is "laid" over the original front.

It was more an observation. I guess when it comes to structures like that, of that age (115 years old), and built when the Little Italy settlement was being more established and growing, it might have been put on some Cleveland historic register that would have prevented it from being demolished. If I had the resource and was living back there, it would have been wonderful to try and keep it from the wrecking ball. Again, I know that time marches on-- and was expressing thoughts and a sentiment. :wink:

I was in town over Christmas, and was just heartbroken to learn that Primo Vino Restaurant at 12511 Mayfield (originally DiTirro's Restaurant --and before that DiTirro's Grocery) and built in 1900, will be demolished to be replaced by some ultra modern looking structure. Not long ago, the old Golden Bowl (Club Corbos) along with that beautiful, ornate brick courtyard with archways and spiral stair cases, was demolished. Yes, the building had suffered major fire and water damage, but the brick courtyard SHOULD have been retained and incorporated into something new. Instead, its now an empty green lawn, lined with some shrubs. Same now with Primo Vino. My cousin and I were in there, in early Jan. We chatted with the owner, Carmen, and had a great time. But to know that yet another original structure from Cleveland's Little Italy, is going to be be turned to dust... is just beyond comprehension. Tear enough of these original buildings down, and NOTHING original will be left. Mayfield Rd and those buildings are the heart of L.I. And, as mentioned in an earlier post, that building was built by my great aunt and uncle (Carolina and Giuseppe DiTirro) in 1900, to house their first grocery store. Later, it became DiTirro's Tavern and then Restaurant, before Carolina sold it, in 1945, upon retiring. I WISH someone had bought it with the intention of restoring it-- removing those white stone panels that were put on in the mid 1960s, covering all the beautiful original stone work, and made it into something special. The ground floor could have been re-opened as a tavern of sorts, and second floor, tho not used now, could have been revamped into office spaces, lofts or the like. And the history would have then been kept in tact, too! Me not a happy camper... :cry: Jeff

This is horrible to read. I live in so CA, but I grew up in a suburb east of Cleve and Little Italy and always have enjoyed visiting, when there. I hope they catch whoever is doing this. Kids or gang members, with nothing better to do. UGH! :whip:

A bunch of us moaned about this proposed demo over the summer over in the Cleveland demo thread: http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,7006.1610.html Not sure what became of the application. Approval of the demo application would more or less expose Cleveland's historic district laws as completely hollow, IMHO. So good to know! Maybe the moaning helped keep the wrecking crew away. Little Italy is such a small area (in the big picture of the city).. to tear down these kinds of historic places and replace them with new will simply erase its foundation... making it just another generic looking neighborhood. That structure is a commanding presence on Mayfield. A multi-level parking garage would look horrific! (i know parking is a problem there..but...) There are other ways to solve that issue, IMHO. The question also is: Is that structure/patio not old enough to be on some historic register? Like anything, it would have to be registered, first.. and maybe it never has been? Jeff

When I walked to the top of the brick spiral staircase and over the small footbridge to look at that apartment area, it was a shambles up there. Doors were open, and there was debris of various kinds laying up there. The people downstairs told me NOT to walk onto the wood area outside the doors, as they were concerned I might step on a soft spot.. so i had to extend my arm to snap a couple photos of the apt doorways up there.

Yes I will. So has there been a stay in the building's execution? Or is someone going to be smart and realize that that brickwork and patio area should be used for something wonderful. Not to mention the fact that to ever re-create that would cost a small fortune. AND it is stunningly beautiful. I thought the days of the careless wrecking ball tearing down a cit's heritage and history were behind us. Corbos should sell it to someone with the stipulation that (the patio at least) not be torn down. If the actual building is in really bad shape from the fire and water damage, that would be a different story. Apparently not.. or at least when $ talks and no one says anything to try and stop it. :cry:

Did the old Golden Bowl / Club Corbos building and beautiful brick patio and archways all get torn down? Once again, i was home and visiting last summer. Wandered The Feast and the gates to the patio area were unlocked and unchained. My cousin and I went inside, took pics of the courtyard, walked all the way to the back and even walked up the spiral staircase, to look at the water and fire-damaged building that is attached. As she and I were leaving, we were told that that whole structure was being torn down at the end of Aug or early Sept. Did that ever happen? We were also told it was being demolished so that a parking structure could be built in its place.

I was in town last month and spent a few days down in little italy. I had lunch at Primo Vino and was talking to one of the owners about what was going on with the old Golden Bowl / Club Corbo's property. He told us that the property has been condemned and that it most likely is going to be torn down. The Corbos family owns that property still. If this is accurate, what a shame. All of those beautiful, ornate brick courtyards and stair cases are going to be turned into rubble. If anything, leave all of that amazing brickwork, patios, courtyards and stairways, and incorporate that with a new structure behind. The original wood sided building in the back apparently had a fire at one point and it all looks boarded up--windows covered-- even the front door, facing the parking lot had a glass pane missing from the left door.

It sounds like the new owner (as of Aug, 2011) has had the property rezoned and will be converting the castle into a 3 or 4 unit apartment. The carriage house in back will also be revamped into another apt. The previous owner, (or caretaker), Charles Milsaps, sounds like he was full of half baked truths and ideas. And also ran up some hefty unpaid bills to an interior architect and lumber yard. Hopefully, the new owner will follow thru, as I read the full restoration could cost millions.

I have looked for any images of the interior of the theater and have come up empty so far (at least online). I do recall reading about the seats being removed. The public was invited to come in, and if they wanted to take the time to unbolt a chair from the cement floor, the chair was theirs for the taking-- as a kind of memento or keepsake. I didnt realize that the old seats had never been replaced. I know parking is tough in LI, but a venue like the theatre, restored and showing avant garde films, foreign fare, or more art films would draw crowds from the neighborhood, the nearby college crowd, etc. What good is it doing just sitting there like that? And for all these years? :wtf: I know the last time i was in town and walked thru LI, the Club Corbo building had a For Sale sign on it. Does anyone know if it still on the market?

What kind of "connections?"

I also found that The Mayfield Theater, (built in 1922) was built and operated by a man named Michele (Michael) Mastandrea. What I found interesting was that on the very site, before the theater was built, was a furniture/dry good store run by Mastandrea. Quite an undertaking, as he decided to tear the store down and have the theater built in its place. I looked at the 1920 census, and it shows Mastandrea and his family lived at 12300 Mayfield (second story apartments above the store, most likely). After the theater was built, he and his family lived in the apts that are currently above the theater. Michael Mastandrea died in 1955, at age 70, and his wife, Christina, died in 1958, in the apartment above the theater, at the age of 73. So the Club Corbo building no longer has a For Sale sign on it?

I did a little research and found some info about the Club Corbo's building. It has been there since at least 1918. There are several addresses tied to this property, as some are in the rear. 12312 Mayfield is the address right on the street, but 12306, 12308 and 12310 are all additional addresses (or were back in the day). The first reference I found for this location was that it was a grocery, owned and run by Ignazio Trombetta. He specialized in selling grapes for wine. It later became a winery/seller. The Trombettas imported wine and also blended their own wine there. (They even had their license revoked by the state in the early 1940's for selling over their quota). In 1946, The Golden Bowl Restaurant was opened at 12312 Mayfield Rd by Grace Sciulli. Her son Hank also ran it, and he refurbished it, in the 1970s, with a series of dining rooms and courts. Sometime after 1982, The Golden Bowl closed. In 1987, Carl Cocita took over the space, redesigned its interior and it was reopened as Ristorante Domani. They served northern Italian cuisine. Cocita also opened the Cafe Domani, which utilized the dining room and beautiful courtyard. This did not last long, and it all closed in 1989. The building sat empty and closed for almost 10 years. In 1998, The Corbos paid a combined $1.18 million for a section of buildings next to their bakery on Mayfield Rd. Included were the properties that once housed the Golden Bowl restaurant and the former Mayfield Theater. In the spring of 1997, it became Corbos Golden Bowl in addition to Club Corbos. Does this building still remain closed today?

Im sure both would require a lot of $$ to redo. I didnt know the theatre had possible water damage. Is that from a leaking roof? Also, in looking at a yahoo overhead image of the theater, it looks like there is some kind of possible residence on the roof? You can see a pair of sliding glass doors (that must lead somewhwere). And because so many of the buildings on Mayfield Rd are over a century old, does anyone know HOW old the Club Corbo building is? when it was built? I am assuming this building wasnt built by Corbos for their Golden Bowl, was it? It looks a lot older than that, to me. Is it from the 40s? Anyone know? :?

The Club Corbos structure looks very cool and the design almost looks to me to be English Tudor. Does anyone know what this place was before it was Club Corbos? Or when it was built? Looks to have a very cool patio area--i remember walking and looking thru the iron gate to the patio area that is closed off to the street. And the Mayfield. I dont get what is happening there. If that venue was gutted and made into yet another restaurant or night club, that would be a travesty. The Mayfield opened in 1923--it screened CLASSIC films thru the 1930s--one of the best decades for films. I just wish I could see what it looked like on the inside. Hopefully, it is still a bit of a time capsule. Hidden treasures, etc.

I would love to restore 12511 Mayfield, too..LOL. It would make my great great aunt proud, to know it was back the way it was designed. :clap: And with 2021-2025 Murray Hill-- that was a real center for the Italian community when it was built and opened in 1907, as Garibaldi Hall. The areas that are bricked over are actually storefronts. That's how it was designed to be, when built. 2025 Murray Hill, on the right side, was actually used as a live theater, (it was called the Columbia Theater) with piano players, vaudeville acts and the like. Plus, the upstairs were used for political meetings thru the teens and early 20s (among other things, too, like social gatherings, etc).

Thanks for dating that picture. I would imagine all of the original hewn stone front is still underneath, and maybe even the windows are there--boarded or cinder blocked over, like those on the E 126th St. side. After F&J closed, it went thru several incarnations between 1965 and 1977. It then sat vacant for about 4+ years, until 1982, when it was reopened as Primo Vino. What is even more fascinating, too, is at the far left of the b/w picture is what looks to be a large plate glass window. That, too, has all been covered over with the stucco panels and added brick decoration. I would love to find out when that front was added. Was it there when Primo Vino took it over? I guess I could call them from LA, and ask. :-D Jeff

In doing some research, I found an undated picture that shows what at least part of the front of Primo Vino looked like, back when it was called Frankie & Johnie's Lounge and Bar (and most likely as it looked when it was DiTirro's Restaurant, as well), and before the stucco facade and wood awning were added. As can be seen, windows also lined the second floor, facing out onto Mayfield Rd. It became Frankie & Johnie's in 1946, after the DiTirro family closed DiTirro's Restaurant and sold it. It operated as Frankie & Johnie's until 1965.

I think it would all depend on how it was attached. I would think, tho, too, that with the right equipment (and restoration company), it could be removed with little to no damage being done to the original brick or stone exterior beneath. Jeff

Great older shot of Mayfield Rd. :clap:

Another building, I want to find out more about, in one that my great great uncle and aunt had designed and built, by the architectural firm of Steffens, Searles & Hirsh, for their bank/restaurant/grocery (an all-in -one of sorts :-)) in 1900. The building, located at 12511-13 Mayfield Rd (and E 126th) is now the restaurant, called Primo Vino. WAY back in the day, it was first called DiTirro's Grocery, and then DiTirro's Tavern (until the early 1940s). They lived on the second floor. The current restaurant is located in the basement; the first floor area is closed off and not presently used. This is another building that had a false stucco facade, added awning and brickwork applied to the front at some previous point in time. As can be seen in the photo, too, the windows of the second story, facing E 126th, were all, long ago, covered over, with what looks like cinder block.

Here is Garibaldi Hall at 2021-2027 Murray Hill Rd (and Fairview Ct), as it looks today. Large entry ways (or window sections) have been long covered over by light tan brick that doesnt even match the old. Doorways and newer front windows were also added. This hall is where operatic performances, as well as highly charged political meetings were held, back when this area was called The Italian Colony Of the East End. My great grandfather had his offices at 2021 Murray Hill (where the gallery now is) in 1915. The art gallery is on the left, the law office is in the center and the seemingly vacant section, is at the right:

I agree. I wonder when the faces of all 3 sections were torn out and replaced with that BAD mismatched, light colored brick? I can only imagine, that as THE Italian hall for meetings, etc, it must have looked pretty grand. My cousin has a book that has several photos of the original members, including my great great grandfather, standing in front of this building, in maybe 1907-1910. I need to have her scan those and send them to me..to be able to compare the structures, too. Jeff

I could not find much history online about this building, let alone what is currently happening there. I did find a 1922 picture of the building, as seen from Mayfield. The building is the third one in the distance, on the left past the "castle building" (also still standing!), seen here: http://tinyurl.com/c2pk2jm Very cool picture. I have seen that one online too. I was able to find newspaper articles (Plain Dealer) about the purchase of the property in 1902 and dedication of the completed, Garibaldi Hall in July, 1907. Today, Bryan Jones Art Gallery is at 2021 Murray Hill and a law office (David J Rossi) is in 2023 Murray Hill. (2025 or 27 Murray Hill looks empty). I guess i was wondering if the entire, original place (first floor-theater, etc) had all been torn out and later redesigned. I think the top floors were, and are, still apts. Jeff