FORT MYERS

Fort Myers at crossroad with McCollum Hall

Cody Dulaney

CDULANEY@NEWS-PRESS.COM

McCollum Hall, a historic landmark built in 1938 that once featured entertainers from B.B. King to Louis Armstrong, has sat vacant on the corner of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Cranford Avenue for years, slowly deteriorating over time.

While Fort Myers officials are working to breathe new life into a historic landmark, they have come to a fork in the road.

Officials can either get started on the restoration of McCollum Hall with money awarded by the state, or attempt to garner national recognition for the building and earn tax credits to close the funding gap. State money would cover only a portion of what is needed to finish the job, and national money might not come at all.

Time is running out for the city, and the Community Redevelopment Agency Board will meet on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. to decide which direction to go. The board is made up of Fort Myers City Council and the meeting will be held in the council chambers, 2200 Second St.

But CRA director Don Paight wants to know what the city will get in return for the work it takes to get the recognition, especially if there is no guarantee that recognition or federal money will ever come.

McCollum Hall, a historic landmark built in 1938 that once featured entertainers from B.B. King to Louis Armstrong, has sat vacant on the corner of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Cranford Avenue for years, slowly deteriorating over time.

The city has already spent more than $1.2 million for a new roof and to stabilize the interior to keep the structure from collapsing, Paight said. A $500,000 grant through the Florida Division of Historical Resources will allow the city to start exterior renovations as soon as next month.

"McCollum Hall" can be made out on a sign on the building at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Cranford Street in Fort Myers.

But it will cost more than $924,000 to give the landmark the attention it needs: new windows, new lighting and repairs to the weathered exterior. The CRA has kicked in about $126,000 to narrow the gap, but that leaves nearly $300,000 needed to finish the job.

On the other hand, a local developer, Bob MacFarlane, has offered to help the city put McCollum Hall on the National Register for Historic Places with the National Parks Service. If successful, he said the city would be able to receive about $400,000 in tax credits.

“That’s cash,” MacFarlane said. “In my old neighborhood, if it was free, go get a second one.”

The city has tried to do the same thing twice before and failed both times, Paight said, due to the poor conditions of the structure. Now, McCollum Hall has a new roof and the weather has been kept out.

And, Paight said, there are additional costs to consider to make the project align with the National Parks Service guidelines: the city would have to spend $300,000 to make changes to the layout and building materials.

Efforts to persuade the state of Florida to nominate McCollum Hall as a place on the National Registry of Historic Places have failed.

That leaves a little more than $100,000 remaining in tax credits for the city, but only if McCollum Hall is placed on the national register in the end.

And on top of everything, the city has a June 30 deadline to spend the state money. Paight said his office has contacted the state to ask for a 60-day extension and will apply by the end of the week. If the deadline extension is approved, Paight said it would put the city in a good position.

But on Wednesday morning, the CRA Board may have to take a gamble on the building entrenched in black history.

“Good gravy,” MacFarlane said, “if you can’t get this building on the national register, I don’t know what else deserves that recognition.”

-Connect with this reporter on Twitter @dulaneycd.