916 Main Historic Structure Assessment

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916 Main Street Hartronft Associates, pc Historic Structure Assessment October 10, 2023 Joe Colacci (1916-2007) was a son of Mike Colacci, who had started and was still running Louisville's Blue Parrot restaurant, which was an Italian -American restaurant that drew customers from all over the region. He named his establishment at 916 Main "Joe's Soft Drinks." It was also sometimes called "Joe's Place." In 1956, the Louisville Times reported that it was being closed down due to illegal gambling. However, "No evidence was presented to substantiate rumors of high -stake poker games in the two back rooms of the pool hall with Denver gamblers involved." (The Louisville Times July 6, 1956 — Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection). The business was closed by court order, but was being allowed to reopen if Colacci were to post a bond (to be forfeited if there was any further evidence of gambling). Colacci Sale to John Madonna & Others; 1966 Raid on Gambling Operations at 916 Main Street In 1959, Joe Colacci sold 916 Main back to John Madonna, with additional new owners Charles DeNovellis and Anthony LaSalle. This image is an excerpt from a 1962 aerial photo and it shows the east side of the 900 block of Main Street at the time, looking east, with 916 Main shown near the middle of the block and as the third building from the right: 2.0.9 900 Block of Main Street - 1962 DeNovellis and LaSalle then transferred their ownership interests to John Madonna in 1964, and he again became the sole owner for the first time since 1953. In the 1960s, the business was still called "Joe's Soft Drinks" even though Colacci had relinquished ownership. Apparently, the building was also still being used for illegal gambling. On March 7, 1966, the Boulder Daily Camera sensationally reported on a raid on Joe's Soft Drinks at 916 Main and the arrest of twenty-two men for gambling. Photos accompanying the article show "stunned faces" as a 16-pound sledge hammer was used to break down the door and a Pueblo man being "flushed out of a basement crawl space" during the raid. The Daily Camera reporter went on to note that many of those arrested acted as if they had been through raids before, including those with the nicknames of "Gus the Greek," "Fat Phil," and "Fat Paulie" Villano (who, as it turns out but which may not have been known by the reporter, was a nephew of the Smaldone brothers). The Daily Camera referred to the dice game the men were playing as "'barbou,' a strange Greek dice game." The following photos and captions are from the Daily Camera coverage of the 1966 raid on the Bug Dust: Page 14 of 51