Crown Point could become a regional hub for dance and the arts under a plan to renovate a long-shuttered former hospital at 2323 N. Main Street.
Leading the way is the Indiana Ballet Theatre (IBT), which is shoring up a $3 million construction grant to finish the interior of structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Gloria Tuohy, IBT’s CEO, founder and ballet artistic director, said that her organization will occupy the third floor of the building, with the first and second floors reserved for arts and various cultural organizations, including collaborative studio space for artists. The plans include the addition of a 75-seat theater and bistro-style restaurant with outdoor patio.
Tuohy said that the new Classical Arts Center aims to become a “regional destination for patrons of the arts.”
“Our organization is really hoping to make a difference in the region,” she said.
Tuohy said she was grateful to the Crown Point City Council, who greenlit the Classical Arts Center project by granting a zoning variance at its meeting on Jan. 9.
The building will replace IBT’s main location in Merrillville, but its satellite locations in Valparaiso and Demotte will continue.
Then and now
Built in 1930, the building was originally a hospital that treated tuberculosis patients, with 43 bedrooms, six baths and five suites, according to Tuohy. The building later became a nurse’s dormitory, and closed in 1973. It served as the offices of the Lake County Transportation Department from 1973-1976.
Boarded up with the grounds overgrown, IBT commissioned exterior restoration on the building beginning in 2004, including a new roof and restoration of the 90-year-old window panes. In 2005, the 20,000-square-foot building received its historic designation.
Tuohy said it’s been a long road to gain the funding for the renovations, describing the interior of the building, currently, “as a mess.” But the final approval of a construction loan will make that dream finally come true.
In addition to the interior work, there will be fresh landscaping, and hopefully a variety of sculptures over the lawn, should a pending arts grant come through.
“We’re full steam ahead, and hope the work will be done in nine months and we can move in,” Tuohy said.
She noted that IBT embraces many forms of dance, not only ballet. The organization produces nine full-length ballets a year and serves about 250 dance students a year — an estimated 9,000 students over the past four-plus decades.
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