Unforgettable

 

 

Restored post office is more than just a memory — it’s a place to make them

BY KERRY FIRTH

The old Fort Pierce Post Office has always been a building with stories to tell. What has changed is its future. After sitting vacant and decaying for nearly two decades, the historical landmark has been painstakingly transformed into 500 Orange, a stunning event venue that honors its past while giving it new life. 

The building was constructed in 1935 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, when the federal Works Progress Administration funded government buildings and infrastructure projects, nationwide, to provide jobs during the Great Depression. A year later, the downtown Fort Pierce post office opened its doors.

From 1975 to 1996, the building also housed federal court proceedings. The upstairs area included a judge’s chambers, offices for support staff, and even a single jail cell. The postmaster’s private lobby entrance doubled as the judge’s emergency exit, which allowed him to move freely between the courthouse and post office. Everyone else had to use separate entrances, a small but telling detail that adds to the building’s lore.

For decades, the post office was a gathering place — a steady presence in the daily rhythm of downtown life. But in May 2001, the building was shuttered. The cost of repairs was deemed too high for the federal government, and the structure was sold to the City of Fort Pierce the following year. There were ambitious plans to convert it into a museum, art gallery or public venue, but those ideas never materialized. Year after year, the once-proud building sat empty, its condition worsening as time and weather took their toll.

Sometimes, however, restoration begins with nothing more than someone willing to see possibility where others see decay.