Green Cove Springs set to renovate Augusta Savage auditorium

Last week the Green Cove Springs City Council approved a grant agreement with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity for design and construction improvements at the Augusta Savage Arts and Community Center Cafetorium in the amount of $1,397,600.

The city said in a news release that the building was originally the cafetorium of Dunbar High School.

“The city planned to renovate the interior as part of the community center complex since it owned the building in 2006,” the city said. “The biggest hurdle was finding enough funding for it to meet today’s building safety codes. That opportunity came when the city applied for the Community Development Block Grant CARES Act funding in March 2021 and was awarded $1,397,600 in September 2022.”

“The City Council, staff and the community have long-awaited this last piece of the puzzle in revitalizing the Augusta Savage Arts and Community Center Complex,” said Assistant City Manager Mike Null. ”It will be wonderful to see the entire campus open and available to serve the citizens of Green Cove Springs.”

The city said that once completed, the renovations will create open auditorium space for Coronavirus testing and vaccinations, as well as a community event space when testing and vaccinations aren’t conducted. Renovation work includes rebuilding the kitchen as a commercial kitchen for food preparation and distribution during emergencies and rebuilding the auditorium stage, new auditorium flooring, new plumbing, electrical wiring, and HVAC systems.

The city estimates that the work will take 24 months to complete.