What could be next for the standout Hulman Building?
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowOfficials in Evansville are hoping to breathe new life into a nearly century-old building in the city’s downtown. The Hulman Building is a 10-story commercial building that exemplifies the Art Deco style as applied to a city skyscraper, according to Indiana Landmarks.
The organization placed the building, which has sat vacant for several years on its 2022 10 Most Endangered List, but one city official said it is primed for redevelopment.
“There’s only a handful of Art Deco that still stands in Evansville,” said Kelley Coures, executive director of Evansville’s Department of Metropolitan Development. “And I think it’s a beautiful representation of the Art Deco movement in architecture in the 1920s.”
The building was constructed in 1929 and originally served as the Central Union Bank, housing a financial institution and additional offices. But the bank went under in 1932 during the national banking crisis.
Enter Tony Hulman. The future owner of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway acquired the building in the 30s as a means to grow the family business, Clabber Girl Baking Powder.
Hulman family friend Fred Nation said in order to make Clabber Girl into a national brand, Hulman had to go south from Terre Haute, and Evansville became another hub for the company.
Coures said Hulman was able to transform the building into a for-rent office building, which became a hot spot for business people.
“If you were a first-tier attorney, if you were a top of the line CPA, this is where you would want your office because your address would be Hulman 901 or Hulman 801. And that was the address that you wanted in the 1930s and 40s,” Coures said.
But the building that proudly dons the Hulman name on the outside is starting to fall apart on the inside after sitting empty for a number of years. Indiana Landmarks says water leaks in through the roof and windows.
But Coures said there has been some interest from hotel developers regarding turning the building into an Art Deco, 1920s-themed boutique hotel.
“I think the fact that the building is still in relatively good shape, and it has retained its its classic look both inside and out…make it ideal for a development similar to that. I just think everything takes time. It’s not easy to renovate and reinvigorate a building that is going almost 100 years old. But this one is really special because there are so few like it.”
The building was acquired by an out-of-state buyer in the spring of 2022, along with the neighboring 1927 garage. The new owner has since relisted the properties for sale as separate parcels, which Indiana Landmarks said makes it less desirable for redevelopment and further jeopardizes the building’s future.
“Without a reuse plan for the property, its high-style period lobby is at risk of being stripped and sold,” the organization said. “The Hulman Building is an anchor landmark in an area of downtown that has lost several buildings. The Art Deco standout needs a preservation-minded developer with a vision for making its rare architectural features shine once again.”
You can learn more about the building and the other entries on the 10 Most Endangered List by clicking here.