- Updated online flyer for the Refractory
The Kress has been sitting vacant since the early 1980s. Flanking the Kress building on the same block are the former Woolworth store to the south and the former J.J. Newberry Co. store on the north. At the beginning of the last real estate boom, plans called for the block to become condos, with the Kress building being rehabbed as the centerpiece of the development. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Sites in 1983. However, National designation provides no protections for a building or site. The city has been urging the current owners, The Doran Jason Group, to apply for local landmark status, which provides protection for the building, but also sets restrictions on uses and alterations that can be made. Doran Jason has been reluctant to do so. Eventually a large preservation battle brewed between the owners and the City of Tampa.
Earlier this year the Gasparilla Film Fest held its closing party in the space, which has no running water, electricity and no working bathrooms. According to a blog post about that event, coordinators even replaced the doors to help bring the place up to code for the event. The Refractory seemed to have a green light for this week until the Fire Marshal demanded that the building be further brought back up to code if more events were to be held in the space.
"We went above and beyond what was required by the code and the permitting process and were still ultimately told no," T. Hampton Dohrman, manager of Hampton Arts Management, said. Ultimately, the city of Tampa Fire Marshal denied the permits for the event at the last minute.
So why did the Gasparilla Film Fest closing party get the green light and Refractory a denial? Many feel it was because the Gasparilla Film Fest event receives city funding, and PYT's Refractory doesn't. On a positive note, The Postmodern Cocktail Experience was able to land a new space, the Roosevelt 2.0, 1812 N. 15th Street in Ybor City, and will take place tonight (Thursday, Oct. 13). Unfortunately for the organizers of the Refractory event, there wasn't enough time to find a new location for the same night.
But, don’t expect Refractory to go away. A visit to the Refractory website, http://www.refractorytampa.com/ reassures us that the event will be rescheduled in a new space before the end of the year.
And don’t expect the battle for the Kress to go away either, this newest chapter seems to have ignited a new set of inquiries into the intentions and ultimate possibilities for the building, and the entire block.
