City votes to sell Hammock Hall as residential

The historic Hammock Hall is being put up for sale after the Palatka City Commission approved the recommendation Thursday evening.

Commissioners made the decision to sell during their meeting, where some residents opposed the sale, while others were overwhelmingly in favor.

Hammock Hall, 429 Kirby St., is zoned for residential use, although the building has always been used for commercial use, city officials stated.

The building had been used in recent years as a community center and the home base for Palatka Porchfest, an event run by the South Historic Neighborhood Association where musicians perform on porches in that neighborhood.

“It’s zoned residential, so the neighborhood association really can’t use it legally by ordinance,” Mayor Robbi Correa said.

Last year, the Historic Preservation Board and the Planning Board recommended against rezoning the property as commercial. Following suit – and following the recommendation of city employees, who suggested selling the property – the City Commission unanimously voted against rezoning late last year.

The last real estate broker’s opinion the city received several years ago for the property, which includes the Hammock Hall building and some surrounding land, came to $150,000, Deputy City Manager Jonathan Griffith said. The Putnam County Property Appraiser’s Office website lists the 2023 market value at $206,440.

City officials have received calls from people inquiring about purchasing the property to use as a residence and keep the front porch as it stands, City Manager Don Holmes told the commission.

One resident told commissioners she wanted the building to remain the central hub for the South Historic District.

Vito Russo, president of the neighborhood association, has during numerous meetings advocated to let the association continue using the building.

But city officials closed the building after it did not get rezoned for commercial use, City Attorney Valeria Bland Thomas said, because parts of the building had been deemed unsafe to the public.

Russo said Thursday that “removing” buildings like Hammock Hall is only going to “damage the city.” There are currently no plans to demolish the building, city officials clarified.

The neighborhood association rented out the building for events and paid the city only $1 per year for its use. The association’s goal was not to make money off the rental, Russo said, but to help organizations that could not afford rates of other event spaces.

Aside from the rental, the association hosted Porchfest out of Hammock Hall, although musicians at the event played on other porches in the area.

“If we lose Hammock Hall, we lose Palatka Porchfest,” Russo said. “You cannot get the festival out into those narrow historic streets.”

Not everyone agreed with Russo, though. Resident Bernard Meehan said Porchfest can survive without Hammock Hall.

“My personal opinion (is) the neighborhood association should not be involved in (the building),” Meehan said. “They had their chances and it backfired.”

Following those comments, Russo questioned the crowd. “Where do you suggest I go?” he asked

But Correa closed public comments and the commission decided to sell the building as a residential property.