WGCU News | PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida
Proposals sought for restaurant and arts center operators at McCollum Hall
By Mike Walcher
September 15, 2026 at 8:47 AM EDT
If you've ever dreamed of running a restaurant at historic McCollum Hall in Fort Myers, now is the time to act.
The city's Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is accepting proposals for a restaurant. The CRA also wants bids to operate a music and performing arts center at the hall. The agency said ideally that center would include opportunities for local artist development and community events.
McCollum once was the cultural hub of the Dunbar community in Fort Myers. But it has been abandoned for years, and the city has tried for more than a decade to bring it back to life.
The CRA has opened a website portal to accept proposals for the restaurant and arts center. The CRA said it wants the restaurant to be community-oriented and to honor the cultural legacy of McCollum.
From the late 1930s and well into the 1960s, Black performers put on shows at McCollum. Artists included Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald. McCollum was a regular stop on the so-called 'Chitlin' Circuit.' That referred to places where African-Americans could safely perform and gather in the times of racial segregation. Entertainment venues were integrated by federal law starting in 1964.
The building, on Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd., is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The deadline for the restaurant proposals is Friday, October 2, at 2 p.m. The deadline for art center proposals is the following Tuesday, October 6, at 2 p.m.
The CRA said that after the bids are received, a selection committee will make decisions on which proposals to consider further, and may ask applicants to make presentations before the committee.
Mike Walcher is a reporter with WGCU News, and also teaches Journalism at Florida Gulf Coast University. WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.
The city's Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is accepting proposals for a restaurant. The CRA also wants bids to operate a music and performing arts center at the hall. The agency said ideally that center would include opportunities for local artist development and community events.
McCollum once was the cultural hub of the Dunbar community in Fort Myers. But it has been abandoned for years, and the city has tried for more than a decade to bring it back to life.
The CRA has opened a website portal to accept proposals for the restaurant and arts center. The CRA said it wants the restaurant to be community-oriented and to honor the cultural legacy of McCollum.
From the late 1930s and well into the 1960s, Black performers put on shows at McCollum. Artists included Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald. McCollum was a regular stop on the so-called 'Chitlin' Circuit.' That referred to places where African-Americans could safely perform and gather in the times of racial segregation. Entertainment venues were integrated by federal law starting in 1964.
The building, on Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd., is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The deadline for the restaurant proposals is Friday, October 2, at 2 p.m. The deadline for art center proposals is the following Tuesday, October 6, at 2 p.m.
The CRA said that after the bids are received, a selection committee will make decisions on which proposals to consider further, and may ask applicants to make presentations before the committee.
Mike Walcher is a reporter with WGCU News, and also teaches Journalism at Florida Gulf Coast University. WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.