Arcade at northwest corner, Nebraska Avenue, and Cass Street

Two-story stucco commercial building with arcade at northwest corner of 910 Nebraska Avenue and Cass Street, housing Army-Navy Store and Red Top Grocery. 1926. Burgert Brothers. Courtesy, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System

Northwest corner of Nebraska Avenue and Cass Street. 2021. © Chip Weiner

This building was at the corner of Nebraska Ave and Cass Street and housed The Workingmen’s Store, which sold overalls and other men’s goods in the corner space. Men’s suits, dress shirts, and hats can be seen in the front windows. It also carried military clothing. The Red Top Grocery and Meat Market was on the right, and the spaces on the left were for rent. There are few records of the businesses, most likely due to their location near the Scrub, an African American section of town that was demolished under the guise of urban renewal. The building later became home to the Red Top Bar and Red Top Pool Room next door.

In 1978, the owners completed a $20,000 renovation with new air conditioning and a lounge area. That same year the city determined the corner on Cass and Nebraska was dangerous and were planning to upgrade it, which meant the building would need to come down. The owner petitioned and received a liquor license and permit to move the bar around the corner, which several city council members later fought, stating the bar was dangerous. The city eventually obtained the building, which burned to the ground in 1979 in a suspicious fire. The lot now adjoins the new mixed use development called the Encore and is vacant and for sale.

 © Chip Weiner. All rights reserved

From Burgert Brothers: Look Again, Vol. 1