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McCrory Building, a 1936 Art Deco structure, has been restored and given a new lease on life after remaining unused and deteriorating for decades.
Art Deco News.Com photo by Karen Kraft. |
Art Deco Building Brought Back To Life
A long-forgotten Art Deco building that sat empty for some 20 years has been restored and given new life.
The McCrory Building, built in 1936 on South Andrews Avenue in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, retains its 1930s-era exterior Art Deco features and ambience, though the interior has been modernized, according to a spokesperson for the owner, Steve Halmos, whose companies, Reunion Group and Halmos Holdings, occupy the second floor.
Halmos restored the building into a functional, two-story office and retail facility because of its key location linking downtown Fort Lauderdale’s business and entertainment districts.
Local contractor Miller Construction Co. was able to restore and expose the original rafters and seal exposed brick walls, leaving painted signage from the building’s early days still visible.
The original steel fire door was also preserved and is now used as access to a storage room.
The 27,392-square-foot building, recently undergoing first-floor remodeling, had deteriorated significantly before the restoration project that began more than two years ago.
Crews had to deal with repairing failing floor substructures and working with fire officials to apply today's building code to the old, non-conforming structure.
Art Deco News.Com recently spotted crews working on what appeared to be a new comedy club preparing to open on the ground floor. The building was a McCrory’s store from the 1930s until the 1980s.
Know of a similar story to the McCrory Building anywhere in the world? Send your news tip to editor@artdeconews.com and please type restoration or preservation alert in the subject line.
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