To save or destroy a piece of Black history in Sarasota? That's the question coming before the city commission on Tuesday.
The Colson Hotel opened in 1926 as a safe haven for African Americans traveling through segregated Sarasota and Black temporary workers, but it has fallen into disrepair.
Its owner, Maximilian Vollmer of JDMAX Developments LLC in Tampa, wants to take down the building and construct new townhomes.
But earlier this year, Sarasota's historic preservation board denied his demolition request.
The matter comes before the commission again on Tuesday, Sept. 3, when a decision is expected.
The Sarasota African American Cultural Coalition wants the building to be preserved, and is urging people to come speak during public comment at the meeting at 9 a.m. at Sarasota's City Hall, and attend a rally in the morning beforehand.
"I think what's going to come before the city commission on Tuesday are going to be four options. One is, can the building be preserved in some form, where it is located?" said Washington Hill, board chair for SAACC.
"The second would be whether the building could be sold and then preserved. And then the third will be whether the building could be moved," he said.
"And then the fourth question will be, well, if all of those are not possible, can the building be demolished, or a part of the building be demolished, but a façade or a marker, or even more than that, be preserved? So that's what the city commission is going to have to answer. "
The hotel is named after Rev. Lewis Colson. He is recognized as the first known free African American to settle in Sarasota in 1884.
The two-story Mediterranean Revival style structure has been vacant since 2023.
Documents filed with the city commission by the developer earlier this year cite a salvage company's assessment that "this property is not a good candidate for salvage" due to extensive termite damage, wood rot and water damage.
The cost to move it would be around $1 million, and the projected renovation budget would be about $2 million, according to the developer.
The building is "currently unsafe and not suitable for occupancy," and "the structure has degraded excessively and is beyond the possibility of repair," said an engineering firm quoted in the documents.
In a letter submitted to the city commission, Vollmer wrote with "a heavy heart" that the "unanimous" opinion of experts was the building could not be saved. He recommended placing a memorial plaque there instead.
"Given the building's historical significance," Vollmer wrote, "one would have expected earlier intervention by interested parties to preserve its integrity, thereby preventing its decline to a state where restoration is no longer a viable option."
Vollmer did not respond to a request for comment.
But Hill said "several of us have spoken with him," and Hill believes Vollmer and his associates "understand the importance of this issue and the building."
"And they understand that they're going to have to find a way to do something other than to demolish the entire building," said Hill.
