Having an office in the Lincoln is out of the question for now. Although the building has electricity (and one fully functional bathroom!), it has almost nothing else. No walls, no air conditioning, no heat — almost no furniture except for the seats still in the balcony. Sometimes we meet at the Bessemer Public Library or reserve a conference room at Bessemer City Hall.
But as we prepare to launch a capital campaign for the Lincoln restoration, we are doing our best work at Forge, a co-working space at Pizitz in downtown Birmingham.
Members of The Holland Project signed up for a group membership in the spring of 2019; since then we have used the space to meet with architects, volunteers, prospective donors, future moviegoers and numerous others. Forge is where we formalized our relationships with Red Thread Consulting and the Sidewalk Film Festival. To date, we have completed four grant applications there, including one that resulted in a $21,000 design grant from the Alabama State Council on the Arts.
In July, our friends at Forge asked whether we would like to be the member spotlight of the month on BhamNow. Kyndall Stoker met us at Forge and let us regale her with tales of tight deadlines and future restoration.
LINK: https://bhamnow.com/2019/07/31/lincoln-theatre-undergoes-restoration-in-bessemer-learn-about-the-revitalization-of-this-arts-dessert-and-the-women-behind-it-photos/