The Henderson City Commission is on board with a request to give the Audubon Kids Zone a parcel of land across the street from the organization’s Powell Street location.
AKZ representatives presented a request to the commission Tuesday for the property where the Dance Hall had formerly been located. Mayor Brad Staton said he liked the idea, and the rest of the commission indicated they would be in favor, but no formal vote could be held because the property is not yet officially a city property, the mayor said.
“We’re very close to owning that particular piece of property,” Staton said.
Once the city finalizes the deal for the property, it can then create a contract that would allow for the handover of the property to AKZ, which would be voted on at a later meeting, Staton said.
In September, the owner of the Dance Hall, Melodie Shrader, had been on the verge of giving the building at 1401 Powell St. to AKZ. In a previous Hendersonian article, she said the deed work had been completed and was ready to be signed when it was learned that the roof in the back portion of the building had collapsed.
The city condemned the building, and it was razed days after.
That left AKZ without the property it had hoped for, though at Tuesday’s city commission meeting Jeff Jackson, the organization’s board president, indicated that having the building condemned ended up saving AKZ future headaches.
AKZ plans to construct a new building on the land that would allow them to provide more space to serve community members, including schoolchildren whom are a primary focus of AKZ’s programs.
The organization’s current location across the street at 1325 Powell St. has a capacity of 45, and it is only serving about 20% of the children in the area that could benefit from the organization’s programs, said AKZ Executive Director Kace Campbell.
“This is really about investing in our kids,” she said.
Jackson said that the new building is part of a multi-phase neighborhood restoration and beautification project. One piece of the project is a renovation of the exterior of the trailers that are the current home of AKZ, Jackson said.
Another piece, the capstone of the project, is the new building across the street, he said. AKZ provided renderings from local architect Tim Skinner at the meeting. Jackson estimated the building’s cost at $1.5 million but said inflation could make that rise in future years.
Campbell said she hopes a capital campaign can begin as soon as Jan. 2026. And Jackson said the goal for the start of construction is in the 3- to 5-year range.