Rising 7 floors high above our Downtown Bradenton, is the historic Manatee River hotel, known as The Pink Palace, a hotel built in 1926 that has been a local landmark since before I was born.
CLICK HERE if you want to see the cups they used
Enlarge photo to see the details around the windows. This 115 room hotel hosted prohibition -era drinking parties, proms and some think Al Capone visited there. Info from Herald Tribune
This landmark pink building at 7 floors is one of our tallest buildings and can be seen from all over the city. no sky scrapers here.
It's most recent use was as Riverpark Senior Residence. The residents in this building had been there for many, many years and were forced to move out of their low income housing when THEY decided to turn it into condos for sale.
Condo's never happened, twice they started to remodel and ran out of money. The latest is in 2013 it will become a Hampton Inn. I am not holding my breathe. It has sat there deteriorating while negotiations with the city have lingered on. Now the city will pay them 1 million and the federal govt will pay 2.5 million to give them incentive to turn it into a hotel.
Above the Palace is reflected in the Bank Building across the street and below the South Florida Museum is reflected in the windows.
MadSnapper Trivia..... when I was a child/teen, we would walk around the block from this building to Fosters Drug Store, which had an ice cream soda fountain in it.
In the 50's we would walk from the Palace Theater around the corner for sodas after a movie. In the 60's they closed the soda fountain and it was a drug store.
Fosters drug store closed it's doors a few weeks ago. CLICK HERE FOR info and pictures
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The last reflection with the green roof, is our Chamber of Commerce building.
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31 comments:
Think about where retired older folks must go without a beautiful setting such as this one. The world is all about money. I find it more and more I go to a place that has been there for a long time, to find out they pulled up stakes. So sad. I want you to keep us posted on the story of the hotel. Great post Sandra.
That is a neat looking building. I hope someone will take the incentive and turn it into a hotel again. With a history like that it deserves the attention.
Our little town had a soda fountain in the pharmacy. I have many fond memories of that place.
I hope that new life can be given to this historic building. It is too nice to let it deteriorate. Great post and header
Woof! Woof! Great photos. There's also a pink building here too. Makes you wonder why Pink? Lots of Golden ALOHA n Woofs, Sugar
Wow what a beautiful old hotel! Love it!
Awesome building.... Beth here....I remember those great sodas! I bet we would be surprised to see what that guy rang up for 30 cents....can't imagine what it would cost today....
great shots! i´m following you now :)
I love the old pink building - I wish it was still used for housing for the elderly. And I'm sorry the drug store closed as it was such a good memory for you. Life does changed though - right? sandie
I hope something good comes with this lovely old building. Especially love the reflection photos!!
Best,
Bonnie
I love old buildings even tho their stories, like this one, sometimes make me sad. Keep your Madsnapper trivia coming. I love those glimpses of our history from your personal perspective.
it is a pretty building - even in pink w/ turquoise trim - it still works. i hope they can really refurbish it for use.
That is a fascinating old hotel. I hope it does get renovated, rather than continue to deteriorate. You captured some beautiful reflections in the windows of the bank.
Oh how I miss those wonderful soda fountains, I've always been a sucker for chocolate ice~cream sodas!!!
Magnificent pictures of those wonderful buildins in your neck of the woods sweetie!!!
God bless ya and have yourself a glorious weekend my friend!!! :o)
I love the reflections and palm trees in these pictures. So this building has been one which you have walked around all your life. But you have never been inside? So ironic that they will now turn it into a hotel, that's what it was in the beginning. I hope it doesn't languish much longer, empty buildings, especially unusual ones, are a sad sight. Sad abut the drug store, I read the rtticle.
terrific shots!
it is a beautiful building. i hope it does get renovated, and you captured some fantastic angles here.
xo
What an excellent historical post.
Why didn't they just leave the hotel as a hotel and restore to it's glory days. Historic bldgs like this should be saved. Oh those cups are so unique kind of cup/mug/creamer look.
Hugs Madi and Mom
That last pic is absolutely gorgeous! The building is pretty n pink. How sad that the seniors lose their home and then the building sits empty.
I bet the drugstore was neat to visit. I would like to live somewhere that had stores like that now. I'm a bit old fashioned. :)
It is so sad to see a beautiful building like that going to waste. I hope something good happens to it.
What a shame about the hotel. I especially love the reflection shots. I hope you have a very nice weekend, Sandra.
Great pictures! Thank you for sharing them, the information and the bit of trivia!
I really enjoyed all the photos..and the history.
It is being maintained very well!
It is sad when these old building are left to deteriorate,when they could be put to good use.I like the reflections.
Cool photos...
The story of that little, long time independent drug store (including the soda fountain) could be our old drug store. Ours has been going since the Civil War time.
It too would have closed, if our son (husband retired a few years ago) didn't switch to all compounding, and join with another all compounding store in another place.
Government and insurance companies will not pay, in a timely manor and it is closing independent drug stores. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't get me going.... Grrrrrrrr....
Oh man, what a lovely buildings. I don't believe the modern ones can compare with them. Al Capone...well, he would have wanted the best.
That is some fabulous building. Too bad it is sitting empty. It's a shame to see old buildings neglected. Sad about that drug store too. I hate to see old, locally owned businesses go out.
That's a super cool building! It's kind of sad when our old favorites close up. :(
Wishing you a very happy weekend!
xo Catherine
Hmmmmmm--not sure they will ever work something out for that old building. Hope someone can do something good with it...
When I first saw it, I thought it was condos for the wealthy... They have those in most cities now ---and many well-to-do older people love living in the 'downtown' area....
I used to love the old soda fountains... My Daddy would take me to one in our town --and buy me ice cream... Yum...
Have a good weekend.
Hugs,
Betsy
That is quit a building! Very nice. Well done. Thank you for sharing, Sandra!
HUGS!
Ah yes there are the changes that just make little sense. But you get to sneak back to others times, times that the youth of today can't grasp.
Love this post.
A lot of history in this building!
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