Historic PG Woman’s Club gets new “old” look

A rendering of the proposed design for the front door and columns that would give the Punta Gorda Woman’s Club a new look with a historical feel. COURTESY PHOTO

Punta Gorda’s favorite dowager ager is about to get a new do — thanks to several grants and a renewed dedication on the part of the organization that manages the Punta Gorda Woman’s Club.

Built in the 1920s, the building at 118 Sullivan St. reflects the Spanish architecture popular in that decade.de And both that style and mission are coming full circle as designer Hannah Wotitzky, a fifth-generation Punta Gorda resident, takes on the task of beautifying the venerable landmark.

“I wanted tot definitely use colors that were representative of the time the Women’s Club movement was created,” Wotitzky said. “So I did my research on what started the movement and why. The reason son why they were started were because they brought women together to build a community. That was just so powerful.”

The General Federation of Women’s Clubs, of which the Punta Gorda organization is a member, was founded in 1890 by journalist Jane Cunningham Croly as a reaction to the exclusion of women from public life. The clubs served as both centers of culture and protest, as women through the years took on a variety of projects. For example the Punta Gorda Woman’s Club, chartered in 1925, served as a USO during World War II and recently hosted a cantina to raise scholarship money during the Sullivan Street Fair.

Zena Wotitzky, Hannah Wotitzky’s grandmother, at a flower show at the Woman’s Club in the 1970s. HANNAH WOTITZKY / COURTESY PHOTO

Wotitzky researched a similar women’s club in Boynton Beach, on the state’s east coast, and appreciated how the members had renovated it to reflect the time period in which it was built.

“I said, ‘They’re on to something; they’re on to something great,’ so I decided to definitely incorporate what is traditional and what pays respect to the history of the women’s club movement and to the style of the building.”

As Wotitzky brings cream-colored walls and elegant, Art Deco light sconces to the facility, exterior work is also taking place. Thanks in part to a grant from the Selby Foundation of Sarasota, a new paint job and other exterior repairs and upgrades are planned.

LEFT: Beth Magnin, president of the Punta Gorda Historical Society board, at Punta Gorda History Park. RIGHT: Hannah Wotitzky inside the Punta Gorda Woman’s Club, which she is redesigning. JAMES ABRAHAM / FLORIDA WEEKLY AND HANNAH WOTITZKY / COURTESY PHOTO

Beth Magnin, president of the Punta Gorda Historical Society board, said the renovation is part of a larger purpose.

“We’d like to see the Woman’s Club return to being a true community center for the downtown area, a place for people to have their celebrations such as birthday parties, wedding receptions and dances,” she said. “You know, years ago it was a USO and it was the library for 30 years. We’d like to bring that spirit back and make it shine again.”

Magnin, whose organization also manages the train depot and the History Park, says the group hopes to improve both the amenities and usage at the facilities under its umbrella.

“We want people to experience all of our buildings,” she said recently, as she sat in the History Park on Shreve Street, just south of the county library.

Around her were several historic buildings that have been moved to the site in recent years. The Price House, the Cigar Cottage and the Trabue Land Office are some of the structures which are now used regularly by various groups.

“We want to make sure our buildings are not just sitting there empty,” she said. “Now we have the Artisans Village, for example. Granted, they’re set up as museums, but we have people meeting and working in the building and that makes them come alive.”

The Artisans Village in the History Park has hosted wood turners, knitters and other crafts creators. The PGHS offers weekly concerts which provide an affordable venue both for musicians and music aficionados.

“We couldn’t function if we didn’t have volunteers,” Magnin said. “I mean, that’s what this organization was built on. It’s the love of history and the love for the old buildings that bring us together.”

The board recently decided to part ways with Sandra Moon, who parlayed her expertise at grant-writing and nonprofit organization work into untold benefits for the organization. For example, her foresight in securing comprehensive insurance for the buildings made it easier to bounce back after Hurricane Ian. And she secured the $39,000 grant that’s being applied to the exterior renovation of The Woman’s Club.

During her tenure, the organization secured a $341,729 federal restoration grant in 2021 and grants totaling $60,000 for Woman’s Club renovation in 2023. A new air conditioner was installed in May 2023 and restoration of all 26 windows, new stage door, historically appropriate hand railings at the front entrance and new railing for the handicap ramp are being built. A $7,500 grant for floor renovation was secured in 2022.

Moon also negotiated a five-year lease to bring a tenant, Downtown Kava, to the Punta Gorda Train Depot. She secured a $341,729 federal grant for the restoration of the train depot beginning in July 2018 and helped organize the popular music series in the History Park.

“Getting grants for historic buildings like this is tricky because any plans to repair or remodel must reflect the architectural and historic integrity of the building in question,” Moon said. As part of executing Magnin’s vision, Moon said, “We were able to apply that standard to all the properties managed by the society. ”

Moon will be leaving in April.

“Whether it’s Downtown Kava, the Woman’s Club or music in the park, we really need volunteers,” Magnin said. “I mean, they are the lifeblood of the organization.”

The Woman’s Club and the train depot both speak to an earlier era, when the city thrived as the southernmost point of the North American railroad system. Those days are long gone — but, just as Punta Gorda has reinvented itself as a tourist attraction, so has the society attempted to rebrand and repurpose the buildings it manages.

“I think it makes the buildings more viable and people are very curious,” Magnin said. “They want to come into the buildings and see what they look like.” ¦

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