DISTINCTIVE HOMES

LOU BARBEE | 440-899-0000

CLEVELAND | $700K

Exceptional Northwest corner unit with walls of windows and breathtaking panoramic Lake Erie views. A vast field of vision from Avon Point to past the Cleveland Stadium. Light maple flooring. Open floor plan. Fresh, tasteful minimalist decor.

RE/MAX REG | LOU BARBEE (440) 899-0000

AVON | $375K

Waterside Crossings. Beautiful 3 bedrooms, 3 full/1 half bath colonial. 2-story foyer. Great room with gas fireplace. Maple and stainless kitchen. Deck and paver patio. Finished level with home gym. Subdivision with pool, clubhouse, tennis and more.

RE/MAX REG | LOU BARBEE (440) 899-0000

WESTLAKE | $650K

3 floors of tastefully finished living space. Lower level with finished recreation room, bar and additional full bath. 2 car attached garage. Excellent schools and city services. Located within minutes of every amenity. Special financing available.

RE/MAX REG | LOU BARBEE (440) 899-0000

MENTOR | $250K

SECLUDED South Mentor property with a myriad of possibilities. 5+ acres. Small existing home on lovely wooded lot. Fabulous place to build your very private “dream home” or a subdivision. Zoning allows 5 horses. A rare offering, opportunity. CLEVELAND | $700K

Sensational sweeping balcony. Everything redone and upgraded. 2 generous bedrooms. 3 full baths. Completely wired! Maple and stainless kitchen. 2 garage spaces. Outstanding amenities: concierge service, fitness center, car wash, more.

RE/MAX REG | LOU BARBEE (440) 899-0000

WESTLAKE

Spacious split level on simply gorgeous park-like wooded lot. 3 bedrooms 2 full baths. Fireplaces in living and family rooms. Neutral. Bright. Updated. Newer granite and stainless kitchen. Light filled sunroom. Idyllic yard. Attached 2 car garage.

RE/MAX REG | LOU BARBEE (440) 899-0000

PORT CLINTON | $800K

Energy efficient new construction at Catawba Bay. Great room, dining, kitchen, den and laundry on 1st. Owner suite with luxury bath. Finished walk out basement to patio access. Amenities: 2 pools, clubhouse, walking trails, docks, exercise center. 2.5 car garage.

RE/MAX REG | LOU BARBEE (440) 899-0000

MADISON | $190K

Pristine condo on cul-de-sac overlooking a lush wooded area. Open floor plan. High volume ceilings. 2 story entry and great room. Family room. Loft. Master with exceptional space and 3 great closets. Private patio. Low HOA fee. Absolutely ready to move in.

PROPPING HIS ARM on the workbench, 9-year-old John Sorgi watches his father, Jim Sorgi, tie a knot on a 5-inch cylinder shell. The “Wizard of Ahhs” is just a boy, but he’s following Jim’s footsteps, who started by stuffing fuses in paper tubes for his father, Vincenzo Sorgi.

Vincenzo, a third-generation pyrotechnician, immigrated from Avezzano, Italy, in 1899. The Pennsylvania Railroad then led him from Ellis Island to Hudson, a town ripe for a notch in the Fireworks Beltway. There, Vincenzo married, bought an old potato farm, honed his craft in an abandoned shack and began taking weekly trips to Pennsylvania, returning with as many as seven suitcases full of fireworks.

No mere hobbyist, by 1929, Vincenzo was attempting to send rockets to the moon. The first rocket climbed a thousand feet before falling. The second rocket was launched but never recovered. The third rocket was axed when the community learned Vincenzo planned to send his dog skyward with a parachute.

By 1960, the then-Cleveland Indians relied on American Fireworks for home run fusillades. The 1980s saw them supplying for Cleveland Browns games, Cleveland's Festival of Freedom at Edgewater Park and the Detroit-Windsor International Freedom Festival.

In 120 years, American Fireworks has grown from a half-acre to 70 acres, and the 250-square-foot shed where Vincenzo’s son and grandson worked is still on the property. The Sorgi legacy is now in the hands of great-grandsons John David Sorgi and Roberto Sorgi, who continue to paint the night with stars.

1960