Howard Theatre
2001 N. Howard Avenue,
Tampa,
FL
33607
2001 N. Howard Avenue,
Tampa,
FL
33607
1 person
favorited this theater
The Cazin Theatre appeared on the scene sometime in the 1920’s. It was located in the then-independent city of West Tampa on the busy Howard Avenue commercial strip. It had changed its name to the Howard Theatre by the early-1940’s.
West Tampa was annexed by the City of Tampa and subsequently declined with the departure of the cigar business, combined with urban renewal and the construction of Interstate 4 (now 275). The building remains standing, but, while preservationists have begun to pay more attention to West Tampa, will likely sit vacant for some years to come.
Contributed by
Andy
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Recent comments (view all 7 comments)
This picture is from August 2010.
Wouldn’t ya love ta get inta that place? Looks in pretty good shape. Hope it gets saved!
Anyone have more info or more photos?
This theatre was also known as the Westown Theatre for a period of time. It may also have had an additional name although I can’t be certain without further research. I believe it closed either in the late 50s or very early 60s. As I recall the building was built as a combination clubhouse/stageplay theatre. The front portion of the building contained the clubhouse with a dance floor upstairs and the theatre in the rear which was later converted to a movie house. I was lucky enough to see the interior around the mid-1990s when a new owner purchased the building and had hoped to rennovate it. I was driving by one day and saw the doors were open.
The interior was a disaster. The auditorium was literally falling apart. Crumbling would be a better definition! There were holes in the ceiling and a portion of the roof over the stage loft had collapsed. Whenever it rained the auditorium must have been soaked with pools of water accumulating on the main level. There was mold and mildrew everywhere. A huge chandelier still hung from the ceiling but barely. I wouldn’t dare walk under it. The screen was long gone and all seats on the main level were also gone although the balcony still had several rows of seats in place. The booth had been stripped. The cement floor of the balcony had small holes in various spots clear through where you could see down to the main level. Not a very safe place to explore.
The exterior was cleaned-up and the windows and frames were repainted a couple years ago as part of a neighborhood revitalization project. But nothing was done to preserve the interior. There’s no way this theatre could be salvaged. It’s too far gone. There were probably several owners/operators over the years judging by the various name changes. Will try to research more on the next library trip.
Some additional exterior shots:
1932:
http://digital.hcplc.org/burgert/archive01/277.jpg
1934:
View link
1935:
View link
Thanks for the exterior photos Nick. Good to see you back on C.T.
Yeah,me too,old friend.
Thanks guys. It’s great to be back on CT!
Thanks, Nick. I was hoping you’d chime in on this one.