Just days after the Tampa City Council approved a resolution between the Jackson House Foundation and a neighboring property, wood panels fell off the east side of the historic building.
The boarding house, which dates back nearly 125 years, welcomed Black travelers during segregation, including baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson and civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Jackson House Foundation Chair Carolyn Hepburn Collins said she wants the latest damage to be fixed within 72 hours of agreeing on a contractor and cost.
Early estimates from various engineering firms have ranged from $10,000 to $500,000 for the emergency repairs to the east wall.
“We’re not rich,” she said. “So do we spend half a million dollars for that? We’re going to let [the contractors] decide. They’re going to have to tell us. Then we’re going to go with what they say.”
The damage happened this past weekend.
"I call it a breach in the contract,” she said. “We had a contract with the house to stay strong, stay healthy and wait us out."
The foundation has been working on a plan for restoring the building for years. The latest holdup was a debate over a 10-foot easement on the east side of the property, which is owned by Accardi Properties. The firm owns the parking lot adjacent to the building on East Zack Street.
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With the foundation, Accardi Properties and the city reaching an agreement last week, Collins began the process of selecting a contractor to plan and complete the entire restoration project.
Now that contractor will have to make the emergency repairs first.
Collins said the priority of the emergency repairs and restoration is to maintain the house’s historic designation at the local, state and national levels.
She added that people keep asking her why the foundation has not made quicker progress on the restoration. She said it costs money – and raising money takes time.
“We are money-, not rich, but money-sufficient. We are accepting donations,” Collins said.
The foundation has narrowed its choice to three engineering firms. Collins’ selection will be presented to the foundation board next week and brought to the city council's Community Redevelopment Agency later this month.
City council Chair Alan Clendenin said it is “unbelievable” that the wooden structure is standing. He said the house must have nine lives and added it is a miracle the open roof and other problems haven’t led to more damage.
ALSO READ: Tampa’s Jackson House is closer to being restored, but there are some holdups
“I don’t know if you could have a greater sense of urgency other than just urgent,” he said about repairing the house after the recent damage. “It’s been at the highest level of urgency for years.”
Collins said her team has preserved some of the historic walls with handprints on them in a storage unit. Other items, like handheld fans that were collected by the owners, are also being saved.
“Some of that wood will be saved to make the house as original as possible, but I would imagine there’s going to have to be new construction,” city council member Charlie Miranda said.
Collins urged people to leave the house alone. Not only is it a dangerous place to go in, but it is also fragile. She said surveyors have told her it could burn down within 20 minutes.
“We are going to move swiftly to make sure that plans are initiated,” Collins said. “We want to save as much in this house that we can.”
Collins said she has fought for the restoration because she wants future generations to benefit from the Jackson House's history.
The two-story, 24-room boarding house is the only remaining building from the oldest Black neighborhood in Tampa known as the Scrub.
“This house was economic development before we started talking about it,” Collins said.
The house had a beauty shop, barber shop and laundry.
There is no timeline for when the emergency repairs or the restoration project will be completed.
Collins said she wanted it done yesterday.
