Villa Cleopazzo - Biblioteca Mediateca

The construction of the Villa is due to Ermanno Cleopazzo (1840 - 1927) who began the work in 1913 and conclude it in 1917. Conceived as a rural residence, the Villa is on two levels: the first floor, originally intended to house the family, and the ground floor, designed to accommodate the servants, the kitchen and storerooms. Made in Art Nouveau style, the building heralds the social and cultural revolution of the twentieth century: the central balcony is decorated with floral motifs, the monumental central door has a tripartite window with the polychrome crest of the Cleopazzo family. The Villa became municipal property in 1939, as seat of the "Youth of the Italian Littorio" and the nucleus of the Middle School "A. Oriani" of Lecce. After World War II and until the early sixties, has hosted the headquarters of ONMI (National Opera of Maternity and Childhood) and some school classes. The restoration began in 1988, under the architect Nicola Miglietta. The central hall, "Sala Cenacolo", hosts cultural events; since 2003, the Villa is also home of the Municipal Library (Media and Newspaper), leader of the libraries of the Union of Municipalities of Northern Salento.