Memoriale Bello

by Amy L. Webb

Banking on the success of the National Irish Memorial, which cost $2.75 million and arrived at Penn’s Landing last fall, a group of Italian Americans is proposing a similar memorial for South Philly that will celebrate Italian heritage in the city.

A collection of neighborhood groups, including the Bella Vista United Civic Association, the Italian Market Merchants Association and Philly-based Italian-American press have met with First District Councilman Frank DiCicco and various city agencies to garner support for the project. Plans for the memorial will be released to the public at a meeting next Wednesday at 7 p.m.

"We have a lot of work to do and a long way to go yet," says Vern Anastasio, president of the Bella Vista United Civic Association. "This memorial will add energy to South Philly and at the same time remind people of the contributions Italian Americans have made to this city."

The association has selected the former community pool site on the 800 block of Montrose Street. In the 1930s and 1940s, it was a thriving bathhouse where Italian immigrants would go to socialize after work. It was later converted into a pool and recreation center, but the pool later closed and the site was left abandoned. The façade of the original building remains.

The monument itself will be designed by artists at Philly-based Viking Sculpture and Design. The façade of the bathhouse will be preserved, and will feature a 22-foot, three-dimensional relief of Italian-American bankers, construction workers, housewives and merchants. The existing pool may be kept as a reflection pool, but designs for the memorial have not been finalized.

The estimated cost of the project is $1 million, which Anastasio hopes will come in donations from civic groups, grants and neighborhood residents.

"This memorial is important because in the Italian tradition, it brings beauty to an area that is blighted," Anastasio says. "It will preserve a historic building and create a nice community space for everyone to enjoy."

Anastasio also says that the city should have more memorials dedicated to ethnicity and culture. "Philadelphia has a reputation for not welcoming foreigners," Anastasio says. "What better way is there to show people from all walks of life that they are welcome in this city and that their heritage will be respected."

For more information about the project’s public unveiling at 818 Montrose St., contact Italian Memorial Incorporated at 215-925-2997.

-- Respond to this article in our Forums -- click to jump there