HobbyTown Oshkosh, home of 'The Backrooms,' is raising funds for a new roof.

OSHKOSH – “The Backrooms” may no longer be in existence, but its original home is threatening to follow suit.

HobbyTown USA Oshkosh , the site of the popular internet meme “The Backrooms,” could be in serious danger of demolition if the building’s 20-year-old roof isn’t repaired by winter.

Bob Mazza, owner of both the store and building, confirmed the grim reality in an interview with the Northwestern after launching a GoFundMe to raise the estimated $78,000 needed for repairs.

“Commercial roofs last about 20 years, and this one is shot, so if we’re going to stick around it’s critical at this point,” explained Mazza.

“The building has run out of time, so we either have to do something or sell it, and in that case, someone will likely bulldoze it.”

Originally built around the 1910s, the more than 100-year-old building only just garnered a level of national significance five months ago when YouTubers discovered “The Backrooms” portrayed the inside of that HobbyTown back in 2003.

An online meme positing the existence of an alternate reality of endless vacant rooms, “The Backrooms” became the springboard for a series of internet horror fiction.

But it took some years before the online sci-fi community could tie the meme to its origins in Oshkosh, considering “The Backrooms” are no longer recognizable after Mazza completely transformed the section of an old furniture store into a RC racetrack.

“It was the biggest mystery for the longest time, and then when the discovery was made that this photo originated from a HobbyTown in Oshkosh, then it took on a life of its own,” said YouTuber Farrell McGuire .

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Now, just months after finally finding their home, “The Backrooms” community risks losing it again.

To that end, McGuire and other popular YouTubers like “Broogli,” who has 1.29 million subscribers, stepped up to give Mazza’s GoFundMe more awareness.

Two separate videos from “Broogli” and McGuire promoting the drive totaled more than 600,000 views between them, resulting in the GoFundMe raising more than $5,400 in just four days.

Donations have slowed considerably since, though, with the page showing a total of $10,671 — almost $68,000 shy of the goal — as of Oct. 4.

“I think this may take a while because it’s about getting the word out,” McGuire said.

While the donations have slowed, the interest in the store certainly hasn’t, as Mazza revealed people are still coming to his HobbyTown to see “The Backrooms.”

A lot of these fans even come from outside the state just to spend a couple of hours inside the store.

“They’ll message us on our Facebook page to make sure we’re open if they’re coming from far away,” Mazza explained.

“Others come in at random, pretty much one or two a day. They’ll ask where are 'The Backrooms,' which is funny because it’s the front room upstairs.”

“The store has become somewhat of an internet sensation,” Mazza joked.

Yet, the store’s relevance to McGuire’s community is no laughing matter.

A software engineer from Ontario, Canada, McGuiure explained “The Backrooms” phenomena has put him on the verge of transitioning to a full-time career on YouTube.

In a matter of months, McGuire was able to move from 4,000 subscribers to almost 52,000 just from his podcasts on the popular internet meme.

And that has nothing on “ Broogli ’s” 1.29 million followers.

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“Me covering 'The Backrooms' is what launched my career on YouTube, and it has launched the careers of so many other YouTubers, so there is a personal attachment for us,” McGuire said.

“We have a great community where we’ve built a lot of friendships online and I can tell you we all want to see Bob continue his business and keep the place where this all started.”

Mazza originally bought the two-story Oregon Street site in 2003 as the new location for his HobbyTown and decided to take pictures of the old furniture store as part of the renovation process.

An innocent photo of a room featuring multiple walls in a yellow hue was then discovered by someone online, spawning several horror and sci-fi-related posts and imagery across social media.

That room eventually became the RC racetrack area for Mazza’s HobbyTown, which routinely stages races during the winter.

But last winter took its toll on the aging building after a storm resulted in some brickwork falling through the roof.

Now, this upcoming season will have that much more significance to it, as Mazza prepares to host special races to fund the roof — and pay homage to the space’s origins.

“I definitely would love to come there,” said McGuire, who admittedly hasn’t made it to Oshkosh as yet.

“I know Bob is planning to put on some 'Backrooms' events and it is only fitting that the community is there to support them.”

Contact Justin Marville at jmarville@gannett.com .

This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: HobbyTown Oshkosh, home of 'The Backrooms,' is raising funds for a new roof.