The city’s Historic Preservation Board recently admonished the owner of a century-old building on South Florida Avenue for painting over the building’s exterior bricks.
The owner’s representative, however, told board members that the paint job was an effort to save the bricks, some of which were crumbling.
The building: The W. Fisk Johnson Building is two doors north of The Polk Theatre. It was built in 1921 and has two storefronts — 111 and 115 S. Florida Ave. It is a contributing structure in the Munn Park Historic District. The two-story building has historically been used as office space.
What happened? Last year, the owners, Professional Developers of Central Florida LLC, applied for a permit to completely renovate the interior, which formerly housed the WonderHere learn-and-play studio and is now home to Little Lake Play. The project included adding new mechanical and security systems, flooring, interior framing and wall coverings. The only exterior work to be performed was replacing the back door.
But the once brown and tan brick was primed, sealed and painted white with black trim in February 2023.
At the Historic Preservation Board’s meeting in January, members asked that the paint be removed, if possible, using a non-toxic organic stripper.
Zack Miller, a tenant and representative of the owners, told the board they were trying to preserve the brick and showed photographs of some of the deterioration of the 100-year-old building materials. He said he would investigate the matter.
Before and after
Historic Preservation Board reaction: In late April, Miller reported that expert consultants said there was no way to get all the paint off without damaging the bricks underneath, which was met with the board’s ire.
“This is a travesty.”
Historic Preservation Board Member Bruce Anderson
“This is a travesty,” said board member Bruce Anderson. “What I’m hearing is there’s no way to fix this.”
Vice Chair MeLynda Rinker asked if there was a code enforcement fine process or donation process for Miller.
“This has got to bite,” Rinker said. “The fact that it’s just an ‘oops’” isn’t enough.”
Miller said there was no malicious intent on his part, nor the part of the owner.
“I understand the frustration,” Miller said. “I went through what I thought was every exact step. If I could go back and take it off, I would. If there is a way that would work at all, I would … it’s my fault.”
Permit required: According to the city’s “permitting requirements” webpage, “Painting of commercial buildings within the Lakeland Downtown Development Authority boundary and historic districts MUST have Design Review approval prior to painting.”
Assistant Director of Community and Economic Development Teresa Maio said the wording has been on the city’s website for several years “as a means to provide clear direction to property owners for whom the design guidelines and standards can seem confusing.”
Public comment: A post on Lakeland Retro’s Facebook page about the paint job shows both applause and jeers for the new look.
“They’re just sprucing it up,” said Jim Phillips. “It’s not like they tore it down or made it look weird. People gotta get a grip.”
“Painted brick is such a loss of original character, as I see it,” said Angela Smith Lester.
The interior: While the exterior was much discussed, Miller mentioned that the interior was a hat-tip to historic Lakeland. Photographs show a play area that looks like Lake Mirror’s loggia — built around the same time as the W. Fisk Johnson Building — and another area that looks like an old-fashioned soda fountain.
In the end: Eventually, the board voted unanimously to approve the work already completed, knowing that it could not be fixed.
Emily Foster, community and economic development senior planner, said Thursday that there is no code enforcement violation because of the vote to retroactively approve the paint.
Board member Michael Porter said he wanted to see the permitting process for any changes to historic homes and commercial buildings be a little more rigorous and have owners personally walked through the entire process so this never happens again.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that the city’s website has said for several years that commercial painting projects in historic districts require approval and permits.
