The Gainesville City Plan Board voted to recommend listing the Florida Theater on the local register of historic places, mirroring a vote from the Historic Preservation Board.
The plan board made the recommendation at its Dec. 12 meeting, and the item will next go before the Gainesville City Commission for final approval. Earning a spot on the local register will allow the owners to apply for more grants and hopefully renovate the theater so that it can be used again.
Board members said downtown needs a vibrant art scene.
Board member Robert Ackerman said if the designation is the first step to renovating the facility, then he supports it. Ackerman made the motion to recommend placing it on the register, and the motion passed unanimously.
Board member Joshua Ney agreed. He said a renovated and operating Florida Theater will bring more people downtown.
Built in 1928, the theater has gone through different phases and owners. It started with “immense success” and themed nights, according to Kathleen Kauffman, the city’s historic preservation officer.
The theater enjoyed success until it closed in the 1970s. Kauffman said a trio of new owners opened the building as the Great Southern Music Hall, entering a brief but successful era.
After another closure and renovation, the building has largely stayed unused since the 1980s.
Bill Bryson purchased the building in 2017 and hopes to reopen it as a music venue. The first immediate step will be to redo the theater’s historic facade, perhaps with the aid of a Gainesville Community Reinvestment Area grant.
Being on the register makes the theater available for the full grant and could open the door to entry on a national register.
I sure do hope that the process is successful and comes into fruition soon. In my opinion Gainesville is in dire need of a concert venue that attracts a robust music scene.
I would love to see Florida Theater restored to its former glory! They have done a spectacular job with Florida Theater in Jacksonville which is constantly alive with music, comedians, musicals & other forms of entertainment year round. Renovating Florida Theater in Gainesville will give an opportunity for downtown Gainesville to be a new destination area for a night out.
I, too, hope Gainesville and Bryson can pull this off. I believe!
The problem is, when something is added to this historic register, Gainesville forgets about it and it goes into total disrepair. Walk around downtown and check out the star garage, or perhaps go to bolware springs and check out how this city treats it’s ‘historic register’. Sad way to remove a property of the tax rolls that someone could have fixed.
“More people downtown”…with no parking. Good grief!