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Historic photos of the Carolina Hotel, before the 1980s renovation
UNC School of the Arts has taken another step in the long-awaited renovation of the Stevens Center by selecting Winston-Salem’s Frank L. Blum Construction Co. and W.C. Construction Co. as construction managers for the first phase of the renovation.
The university owns the 77,500-square-foot performing arts center in downtown Winston-Salem.
The first phase will likely take about three years. It will include roof and building repairs as well as interior improvement addressing accessibility and upgrades related to water intrusion, HVAC and fire suppression systems.
W.C., a minority-owned, Historically Underutilized Business-certified firm, has been in business for 14 years.
The Stevens Center house seating as seen from the stage.
Blum and W.C. were approved by the UNCSA Board of Trustees on July 20.
The companies will work with architects and engineers “to provide a construction perspective and expertise to the design process.”
“The Blum-W.C. Construction team has a proven track record of successfully delivering historic preservation and state construction projects in North Carolina,” UNCSA chancellor Brian Cole said in a statement.
“In addition to being incredibly qualified, the team has successfully delivered some of the most iconic buildings in our community, and the team’s offices are less than three miles from the Stevens Center.”
On June 9, UNCSA announced that Little Diversified Architectural Consulting of Charlotte and Steinberg Hart of Los Angeles have been hired to handle the design portion of the project.
The Forsyth County legislative delegation was able to secure $29.8 million for the project in the 2021-22 state budget. UNCSA is requesting another $12.4 million in future state funding.
Blum and W.C. have combined to complete more than 550 construction management projects totaling more than $1.4 billion in the last 10 years.
“Our local presence, our experience delivering quality projects across the Triad and the team we have assembled uniquely position us to successfully deliver the Stevens Center renovation project,” Blum vice president Mark Dunnagan said.
W.C. founder and president William Cockerham said that “we have a long-standing commitment to maximizing participation in all of our projects, and we recognize the importance UNCSA places on employing minority and women-owned businesses.”
The advance planning and design now underway is expected to take between 12 and 18 months to complete.
Once those steps are finished, UNCSA expects the entire building will be closed for about two years, meaning the renovated Stevens Center could open between summer 2025 and early 2026.
The center will remain open for rehearsals and performances at least through the 2022-23 season.
“Information about alternate venues for the UNCSA performance season, community programs and partner organizations during the time that the Stevens Center is dark will be announced at a later date,” UNCSA said.
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts is planning to make major renovations and improvements to the Stevens Center in downtown Winston-Salem.
The 1,366-seat center debuted in 1929 as a silent movie theater. The neoclassical building was restored and reopened in 1983 with a redesigned stage and backstage that was able to house Broadway-scale live performances of music, theater, dance and opera.
“Efforts will be made to retain the building’s original character,” UNCSA said.
Other renovation phases will involve improving the experience for show attendees and students.
UNCSA said it has not settled on an overall cost for the full renovation, which will include public and private funding for each phase.
Cole said that chief among Little and Steinberg Hart’s services will be to determine cost and phasing strategies.
The groups have teamed to design and construct more than 80 art centers that serve academic institutions and their surrounding communities, including several in North and South Carolina.
Melanie Reddrick, executive principal-in-charge of Little, said the team recognizes that the Stevens Center “is a significant historic treasure, and it holds great meaning for UNCSA and the region.”
“We will work closely with university and community stakeholders to give this remarkable theater a new lease on life,” she said.
Those stakeholders include the Winston-Salem Symphony, Piedmont Opera and the National Black Theatre Festival.
“When we are finished, our hope is that the Stevens Center brings joy to Winston-Salem for another 100 years,” Reddrick said.
UNCSA will continue to seek input from the Winston-Salem community for the project, as well as partner organizations that use the Stevens Center.
In September 2017, the UNCSA board of trustees approved a concept master renovation plan.
Then-UNCSA Chancellor Lindsay Bierman said in September 2017 that the plan provided a detailed analysis of existing conditions, reflected the ‘must-haves’ of most campus and community stakeholders, and outlined realistic cost estimates to bring the Stevens Center up to current industry standards and building codes.
Construction and other items, including furnishings, new rigging systems, lighting and audio/visual equipment were projected at that time to cost $35.2 million.
UNCSA said Little and Steinberg Hart develop new design plans but will refer to the 2017 concept plan.
Rep. Donny Lambeth, R-Forsyth, said that even though it took years to get funding for the renovation into the state budget, the inclusion represented a recognition “that the Stevens Center has served our community well and is a shining example of our commitment to the arts and educational programs.
“However, it is in need of repairs and updating,” Lambeth said.
The back side of the Carolina Theatre marquee is seen in a view of Fourth Street from the window of a guest room of the Carolina Hotel, Thursday, April 10, 1980.
Construction begins to transform the old Carolina Hotel into the UNCSA's Stevens Center, Nov. 20, 1980. Photo made from the Nissen Building. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A hand-written letter lies crumpled at the foot of a stripped bed, covered with a snowfalll of paint chips in a derelict guest room of the old Carolina Hotel, Thursday, April 10, 1980. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A worn armchair sits is a sea of paint chips from the peeling walls of a guest room in the Carolina Hotel, Thursday, April 10, 1980. Spruce Street is seen through the open window. The room would soon be destroyed by workmen gutting the old hotel to transform it into the Stevens Center for the School of the Arts. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Carolina Hotel letterhead stationery and a telegram pad coversheet languish in an open drawer of a derelict guest room in the once-grand hotel, Thursday, April 10, 1980. These quaint traces of communication in a bygone age were soon swept away as the hotel was gutted to become the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Found stilll resting on a dresser table in a guest room of the derelict Carolina Hotel during a tour of the building, Thursday, April 10, 1980, were a plastic-wrapped drinking cup, 1969 Southern Bell Winston-Salem telephone book with a photo of Groves Stadium on the cover and an anachronistic ash tray. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
With paint peeling in sheets from the wall and scattered in chips on the tiled floor, the long-vacant bath of a derelict guest room gathers dust Thursday, April 10, 1980. The bathroom would soon be demolished during the building's renovation as the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Fallen paint chips blanket the floor and sparse furniture of a derelict guest room in the old Carolina Hotel on Thursday, April 10, 1980. The once-grand hotel would soon be gutted to become the Stevens Center for the UNCSA. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Peeling paint hangs in strips from the ceiling of the derelict Carolina Hotel on Thursday, April 10, 1980. The old hotel would soon be gutted to become the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A caretaker peers into the bathroom of a guest room in the derelict Carolina Hotel on Thursday, April 10, 1980. Several of the rooms looked as though the overnight guest had just left, with bed covers thrown back, coat hangers scattered and personal items left behind. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The guest rooms in the 1920s-vintage Carolina Hotel all had wooden speaker cabinets mounted on the wall, emblazoned "CH," to supply local radio broadcasts and hotel announcements. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
With paint peeling in sheets from the wall and scattered in chips on the tiled floor, the long-vacant bath of a derelict guest room gathers dust Thursday, April 10, 1980. The bathroom would soon be demolished during the building's renovation as the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A used razor, a pocket book of Bible verses and a nearly empty matchbook from a bank scrawled with the words "Mary...Mary...Mary...Mary.." were left on a windowsill and blanketed with fallen paint chips as years crawled by in the old hotel.(Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A building caretaker walks through a hallway of the derelict Carolina Hotel Thursday, April 10, 1980, the floor covered with paint chips from the peeling walls. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Discarded furniture and peeling paint chips littered the halls of the derelict Carolina Hotel on Thursday, April 10, 1980, as the once-grand hotel awaited transformation into the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Someone at the Carolina Hotel left a vintage Army recruitment card behind, propped on the stained windowsill and found Thursday, April 10, 1980. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A pair of worn leather boots sits discarded at the foot of an unmade bed in the derelict Carolina Hotel on Thursday, April 10, 1980. The once-grand hotel would soon be gutted to be transformed into a premier performance venue for the UNCSA, re-named the Roger L. Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A forlorn guest room in the derelict Carolina Hotel is seen during a tour on Thursday, April 10, 1980, just before its renovation into the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
A derelict hotel room of the former Carolina Hotel, with peeling paint chips scattered on the floor, an unmade bed, and destroyed window air conditioner, seen Thursday, April 10, 1980, on a tour of the empty hotel before demolition began to create the Stevens Center. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Five floors of old Carolina Hotel rooms were removed to make way for a new staircase from the orchestra lobby of the Stevens Center to the balcony lobby. In this view, from Feb. 10, 1981, the floors and room walls have been removed, leaving the outer wall of windows, right, to be replaced with an open wall of glass.(Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Floors and walls of hotel rooms of the old Carolina Hotel were removed in the renovation of the Stevens Center.(Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Five floors of old Carolina Hotel rooms were removed to make way for a new staircase from the orchestra lobby of the Stevens Center to the balcony lobby. In this view, made Feb. 10, 1981, the floors and room walls have been removed, leaving the outer wall of windows, right, to be replaced with an open wall of glass.(Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Five floors of old Carolina Hotel rooms were removed to make way for a new staircase from the orchestra lobby of the Stevens Center to the balcony lobby. In this view, made Feb. 10, 1981, the floors and room walls have been removed, leaving the outer wall of windows, right, to be replaced with an open wall of glass.(Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Second floor lobby area to orchestra seating, under renovation Feb. 10, 1981. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The open space of what would become the balcony staircase of the Stevens Center seen during demolition, Feb. 10, 1981.(Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The sixth, seventh, and eighth floor of the old Carolina Hotel were left gutted and used for storage at the Stevens Center. Fragments of paint and tilework are all that remain of the old hotel rooms. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The ghost light at the Stevens Center is a rolling stage work light, the shade decorated with scraps of playbills and fringe fallen off an old costume. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The main lobby entrance to the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 21, 2017. Beyond is the ticket lobby, once the lobby for the Carolina Hotel, with one of the original elevators. The sloping foreground was the open breezeway entrance for the Carolina Theater, with the ticket box outlined in tile on the floor, left, and doorways to the former concession area at right, when the stairs did not exist. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The ground floor entrance to the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 21, 2017, showing the stairs leading to the orchestra and balcony lobbies. Originally open space as the breezeway entrance to the old Carolina Theater, the concession stand stood beyond the windows, originally the entry doors. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The former concession area of the old Carolina Theater, then remodeled as restaurant space, is open to the orchestra lobby of the Stevens Center, seen in September of 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Former restaurant space on the ground floor of the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The top landing of the balcony stairs, seen Sept. 19, 2017, reach the fifth floor. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The former concession area of the old Carolina Theater, then remodeled as restaurant space, is open to the orchestra lobby of the Stevens Center, seen in September of 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Kettle drums, stacked chairs, and risers seen between symphony performances onstage at the Stevens Center, Sept. 19, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
One of the large dressing rooms beneath the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 19, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
Stairways backstage at the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 21, 2017. The stairs at left lead to the stage; stairs at right lead to dressing rooms, rehearsal rooms, and the green room. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The box office lobby of the Stevens Center, with a view through the theater lobby and former corner restaurant space, seen in September, 2017. The urn at right is one of a pair that once stood in niches below the organ bays in the old Carolina Theater. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The top landing of the balcony stairs, seen Sept. 19, 2017, reach the fifth floor. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
This elaborate ceiling fixture was installed in the orchestra lobby of the Stevens Center in its original renovation. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The ground entrance to the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 21, 2017, with stairs leading to the orchestra seating lobby and continuing five floors to the balcony seating. The open space to the right was former restaurant space, with additional dining seating beyond the windows at left, long ago the concession area for the old Carolina Theater. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The Stevens Center orchestra pit, as seen Sept 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The orchestra stairs and lobby in the Stevens Center, seen Sept. 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The Stevens Center balcony seating, seen Sept. 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The Stevens Center balcony seating, seen Sept. 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The Stevens Center house seating as seen from the stage, Sept. 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
The Stevens Center house seating as seen from the stage, Sept. 21, 2017. (Winston-Salem Journal/David Rolfe)
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Historic photos of the Carolina Hotel, before the 1980s renovation
The Stevens Center house seating as seen from the stage.
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts is planning to make major renovations and improvements to the Stevens Center in downtown Winston-Salem.
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