Welcome to Winters 2021 — Page 17
A piece of Winters history brought back to life By Aaron Geerts Express staff writer At the corner of Second and Main Streets, perhaps the most unique – and iconic – building in town is coming back to life. To revitalize this piece of Winters history, however, required the lion’s share of resiliency and determination. The Spanish colonial era building was built back in 1912. Teeming with history and culture, it served as more than a church, but something of a community center as well. With this in mind, Rhonda Pope Flores and her husband have renovated the building while keeping its original purpose intact. “It was originally a church. Interestingly, I learned in some research that what we’re doing isn’t much different from its original use,” Pope Flores said. “It had dances, plays, performing arts, fundraisers and basically all the things we want to use it for. The building won’t primary be a church, it will have a community aspect attached
“There’s too much of our history that’s easily erased. People come in and want to develop new buildings and don’t have an appreciation for these old buildings with rich history attached to them. It’s time to really make it a benefit to the community so people can use it, enjoy it and be proud.” Rhonda Pope Flores to it for other events supporting local businesses. I also have local artists wanting an open mic night and other people wanting to have dance class down-
Jeff Rawlinson/Winters Express
The most noticeable change to the building is the color. The black and white pays homage to the Spanish colonial era it’s modeled from.
Jeff Rawlinson/Winters Express
The owners hope to have the building serve as a community-oriented event space that will collaborate with local artists and businesses and potentially serve as a venue for private events. stairs. I’ve learned a lot about what people want and it’s nice incorporating those needs into the overall vision.” The Pope Flores’ purchased the building last December and began cleanup right away. Paperwork mired progress — as it usually does — but after months of hard work, the couple is now putting the finishing touches on their renovation. “People will be very surprised to see we’ve preserved everything. We have the original wood, and the benches have been restored and re-stained.
Historical preservation is in my background, and now we’re working with the city to get as much documentation done as possible,” Pope Flores said. “People drive by and yell ‘great job’ and ‘keep up the good work!’ It’s nice because I wasn’t sure if people wanted something here, but people are really liking it.” Perhaps the most noticeable change to the building is the color. The black and white pays homage to the Spanish colonial era it’s modeled from. The purple doors, however, are a homage to the artist which the
building derives its name: The Grand Prince Odeum. “The purple doors are Prince’s color, and it’s all very deco art era from the 1920’s. That was a very artistic time in our history, so it’s a blend of the two,” Pope Flores said about the merging of historical and cultural influences. “I love that we own a building filled with rich history. I see it as a duty to take care of it, and I think my husband and I have won people over. We’re open and transparent with what we’re doing and
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