Palazzo Flaim, a rare example of rationalist architecture on the shores of the picturesque Lake Maggiore, was built in 1935 with the original name 'Casa del Fascio' (House of Fascism). This distinctive building was designed by architect Luigi Vietti, a native of Cannobio, and its inauguration took place on June 23, 1935, in the presence of the secretary of the National Fascist Party, Achille Starace.
Initially, Casa del Fascio served as the local headquarters of the National Fascist Party. However, from 1943 to 1945, it became the headquarters of the Republican Fascist Party (Partito Fascista Repubblicano or PFR). During the years of the Italian Social Republic (Repubblica Sociale Italiana or RSI), this imposing structure was transformed into a military barracks that housed the sixth company of the infamous Sixth Black Brigade of Novara 'Augusto Cristina', commanded by the fascist Nino Pozzi. The Black Brigade was a paramilitary unit of the PFR, formally established on July 1, 1944. Over the months the unit, primarily composed of elderly fascists and highly indoctrinated youths, was mainly assigned to police operations and military actions against partisan forces. Moreover, the fascist military patrols that guarded the city set out from Casa del Fascio, strategically located at the entrance to the town, while political prisoners were interrogated and tortured inside the building.
In January 1944, a group of partisans from the GAP (Gruppi di Azione Patriottica) set fire to Casa del Fascio, and the building was later taken over by the Mario Flaim division during the liberation of Intra on April 24, 1945. In honor of Mario Flaim, a partisan martyr who fell in the battle of Monte Marona during the massive roundup of June 1944, both the palace and the adjacent square were named after him.
Mario Flaim, born in Rovereto in 1919 and killed at Pizzo Marona on June 17, 1944, was a heroic commander who fiercely defended partisan positions against German forces in the Val Grande. After his death, in March 1945 the partisan division that merged the 'Valgrande Martire' and the 'Cesare Battisti' took his name as a token of recognition and respect.
After the end of World War II, Palazzo Flaim became the headquarters of the National Association of Italian Partisans (Associazione Nazionale Partigiani d'Italia or A.N.P.I.), with Armando Calzavara, known as "Commander Arca", appointed as its first president. Currently, it serves as the official seat of the Verbania City Council.