Wareham Hall Set to Reclaim Its Stage After $40 Million Revamp

A $40 million renovation is transforming Wareham Hall, but Executive Driector says its historic character will remain untouched.

Construction on the historic Wareham Hall broke ground in November, since then, major changes have gone on inside and outside the 120 year old building.

The staple "Wareham" neon sign that shined on Poyntz Avenue for nearly 88 years, came down early in the project to make way for the construction vehicles that would eventually take over the inside of the building.

Executive Director Blade Mages said after examination of the sign, it could no longer be restored to its original state due to the repair job that was done in 2008 after the sign caught fire during an event.

"It's really past the point of salvage." He said. "So basically, what's going to happen is the sign will be exactly replicated with newer materials and things of that sort. It'll be a hand painted sign as it originally would have been but, that was kind of a pretty significant discovery once we had the thing off"

Mages explaned that despite the major changes to the inside of both Wareham Hall and the building next to it, 414 Poyntz Ave, nothing of historic value will be lost in the 40 million dollar renovation due to strict rules they have to follow with their type of funding.

"Historic tax credits are a huge part of the project and in order to get those, you have to play by all these historic rules and so they've signed off on everything we're doing, so anytime we hear people talk about, gutting the building, we're always really cautious to make sure that people understand we're not getting rid of anything of historic fabric" Mages said.

As far as the demolition itself, Mages said there has not been any concerning structual issues they've encountered while digging out the buildings.

"typically when you start to dive into an old building, you expect to find all sorts of nightmare problems" He said. "Luckily, at least to date, there really haven't been anything too major in terms of discoveries along the way."

Although the opening wont be until 2027, there are already plans for each space and how the building will be utilized once the project is finished.

Mages said the building will now be focusing on community programming and performances, breaking away from the multi-purpose event space it has been primarily used as prior to renovation.

"When we reopen in 2027 we will be predominantly a space for live performance, whether that be music, comedy, you know, theater, the building will kind of once again return to its position in the community as a show place" Mages said.

The Wareham Hall is a non-profit organization, so the funding for the project has been a combination of historic state and federal tax credits, as well as private philanthropy by people who belive in the historical significance of the building.

Donors David and Mindy Weaver explained that their personal history with the Wareham, and the importance of preserving a historical structure, is the reason they're involved with the project.

"Its made a great all purpose building, and now it's going to be even better, and holding on to the historical end of it just goes with Manhattan and makes us all proud" Mindy said.

Mages explained that the public can also be involved with the project through fundraisers.

"There are numerous ways that the public can get involved in helping us meet our overall goal" He said. "A great opportunity for that is on April 22 the Community Foundation is hosting their Grow Green Match Day, and we're a participating organization on that event, so for every dollar that gets donated, half of that will be matched. So it's a great way to help us out and help out other nonprofits in the area."

To learn more about the renovations of the Wareham Hall or how you can get involved, visit warehamhall.org.