S. H. Kress and Co. Building | |
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S. H. Kress & Co. building in downtown Tampa | |
Location | 811 N. Franklin St., Tampa, Florida |
---|---|
Coordinates | 27°57′3″N 82°27′34″W / 27.95083°N 82.45944°W |
Area | less than one acre |
Built | 1928 |
Architect | G.E. Mackey |
NRHP reference No. | 83001424 [1] |
Added to NRHP | April 7, 1983 |
The S. H. Kress and Co. Building is a historic 1928 [2] [3] building in Tampa, Florida, United States. It was part of the S. H. Kress & Co. " five and dime" department store chain. The store closed in 1981, and has since remained vacant. [3] [4] on April 7, 1983, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. [5]
Located at 811 N. Franklin Street, the building has a second fronting on Florida Avenue and is in the Renaissance Revival architectural style. G.E. Mackey was the four-story building's architect, and it includes masonry, suspended bronze marquee, extensive use of terra-cotta ornamentation (on both of its facades). It was "one of the last major commercial structures built in Tampa before the Great Depression". [6]
The Kress building is located between former Woolworth and J.J. Newberry stores, although the block is commonly known as the "Kress block." [7] [8] [9] Lunch-counter sit-ins and protests at the block were held by civil rights activists at the Woolworth store in the 1960s to protest segregated lunch counters in Tampa. Today, there is a historical marker commemorating the movement. [10]
Redevelopment plans for the Kress and the surrounding block date to at least 1987. Richard Wellhouse Stein planned to renovate the nearby structures to match the Kress façade, and add a nine-story atrium house nearly 200,000 square feet of office space. [4]
Plans by the Doran Jason Group to demolish two of the buildings and replace them with a "massive" condo development were held off in 2006. The Kress building would have been used as a lobby with office and retail space. [11]
In 2011, a fundraiser at the Kress building was cancelled due to the dispute over redevelopment plans. [12]
The building was planned for social gatherings during the 2012 Republican Convention in Tampa, although the RNC kept details about the gathering secret. [13]
In 2014, plans for renovation and a 24-story addition and conversion of the block into a hotel were proposed, [8] [14] then scrapped. [7]
The block, including the Kress building, was purchased in 2017 by the Wilson Company, a Tampa-based property management firm. [15] Statements at the time of purchase indicate plans to preserve, renovate, and redevelop the block. [7] [16]
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S. H. Kress and Co. Building | |
![]()
S. H. Kress & Co. building in downtown Tampa | |
Location | 811 N. Franklin St., Tampa, Florida |
---|---|
Coordinates | 27°57′3″N 82°27′34″W / 27.95083°N 82.45944°W |
Area | less than one acre |
Built | 1928 |
Architect | G.E. Mackey |
NRHP reference No. | 83001424 [1] |
Added to NRHP | April 7, 1983 |
The S. H. Kress and Co. Building is a historic 1928 [2] [3] building in Tampa, Florida, United States. It was part of the S. H. Kress & Co. " five and dime" department store chain. The store closed in 1981, and has since remained vacant. [3] [4] on April 7, 1983, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. [5]
Located at 811 N. Franklin Street, the building has a second fronting on Florida Avenue and is in the Renaissance Revival architectural style. G.E. Mackey was the four-story building's architect, and it includes masonry, suspended bronze marquee, extensive use of terra-cotta ornamentation (on both of its facades). It was "one of the last major commercial structures built in Tampa before the Great Depression". [6]
The Kress building is located between former Woolworth and J.J. Newberry stores, although the block is commonly known as the "Kress block." [7] [8] [9] Lunch-counter sit-ins and protests at the block were held by civil rights activists at the Woolworth store in the 1960s to protest segregated lunch counters in Tampa. Today, there is a historical marker commemorating the movement. [10]
Redevelopment plans for the Kress and the surrounding block date to at least 1987. Richard Wellhouse Stein planned to renovate the nearby structures to match the Kress façade, and add a nine-story atrium house nearly 200,000 square feet of office space. [4]
Plans by the Doran Jason Group to demolish two of the buildings and replace them with a "massive" condo development were held off in 2006. The Kress building would have been used as a lobby with office and retail space. [11]
In 2011, a fundraiser at the Kress building was cancelled due to the dispute over redevelopment plans. [12]
The building was planned for social gatherings during the 2012 Republican Convention in Tampa, although the RNC kept details about the gathering secret. [13]
In 2014, plans for renovation and a 24-story addition and conversion of the block into a hotel were proposed, [8] [14] then scrapped. [7]
The block, including the Kress building, was purchased in 2017 by the Wilson Company, a Tampa-based property management firm. [15] Statements at the time of purchase indicate plans to preserve, renovate, and redevelop the block. [7] [16]
{{
cite book}}
: CS1 maint: date and year (
link)