In Texas Trying To Fix Fort Worth's Blighted New Isis Theater Eyesore

A day or two or three ago potential U.S. Representative, Elsie Hotpepper, messaged me regarding that which you see here, an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about A drama teacher’s dream: Restoring this 1930s Fort Worth movie theater.

I had already seen this article and had already screen capped that which you see here, intending to blog about it, but then forgot about it til reminded by the aforementioned future U.S. Representative, Elsie Hotpepper.

I was not long in Texas when I was first appalled by Fort Worth's New Isis Theater, appalled because it appeared to be an abandoned eyesore blighting the good looks of what I then (and still do) think is Fort Worth's only actual tourist attraction, the Fort Worth Stockyards.

That was almost 20 years ago I first saw the blighted New Isis Theater eyesore. Soon thereafter I began my Eyes on Texas website. At that point in time I was still trying to come to terms with the culture shock of adjusting to Texas, after having spent my entire life in a more modern, progressive part of America, where something like the New Isis Theater would not be allowed to fester in such a sad state of decrepitude in such a location.

Early on in my Eyes on Texas webpage writing my take on what I was describing might seem a bit more harsh than my 2017 version of describing that which appalls me, because, like I already said, I was still trying to adjust to the culture shock.

Most of what is on the Eyes on Texas website predates when I began doing the blogging thing, hence some of the dates referenced on those webpages are from way back early in this century.

During that early in this century time frame I made a webpage documenting some of the tacky things I was seeing, calling that webpage Texas Tacky, if I remember correctly.

The Texas Tacky webpage has a section devoted to the New Isis Theater tacky eyesore. That generated some interesting feedback relevant to this latest iteration of a well meaning person trying to restore that long abandoned theater.

That is a screen cap of part of the Texas Tacky webpage's New Isis Theater section you see here. I will copy some of the text. You may find the message I received over a decade ago about an effort to restore the theater to be interesting...

THE FORT WORTH STOCKYARDS

This example of Texas Tacky is in Fort Worth's Stockyards. There is an abandoned theater on Main Street in the heart of the Stockyard's 'Historical District' called, ironically, the 'New Isis'. This theater appears to have long been abandoned, broken windows covered with plywood as per the Fort Worth standard for abandoned buildings. To add to the tackiness semi-current messages are put on the marquee. On one side the sign says 'Welcome to the Historic Fort Worth Stockyards', while the other side announces 'Christmas in the Stockyards', which would be fine, except this sign still says this, on the first day of spring, 2002, well after Christmas. It is difficult to understand how a major city would allow such an eyesore to exist in the heart of its main claim to tourist fame. Particularly an eyesore with such renovation possibilities. Where is the civic pride? Perhaps a city government group could be sent to other towns to see how they manage to fix such problems. Any of the tourist towns in Washington state would suffice, or any of the tourist towns on Highway 49 in California. Or any of the tourist towns in Colorado, Utah, Arizona or New Mexico. Or just stay in Texas and find out how the town of Archer City managed to renovate their town's famous theater.

UPDATE: In fall of 2005 the reader board on the ISIS was changed to indicate the eyesore was going to be re-modeled. The re-modeling does not appear to be underway.

UPDATE 2:  June 7, 2007 we received the following email:

From: Robert Adams
To: feedback
Sent: Thursday, June 07, 2007 10:40 PM
Subject: The New Isis Theater

Dear Tacky Texas,

As an FYI - The New Isis Theater is currently in the architectural phase of renovation. This will probably take 3-4 months and the renovation approximately 14-16 months. Hopefully we can achieve a look which will remove us from your expertly crafted list of Stockyard buildings in need of repair. You could be very helpful in this process by informing your web viewers that the original seats from the inside of the theater are available for those who would like to purchase a piece of history. These will need to be replaced because of they are only 16 1/2 inches wide compared to modern theater seats at 21". (a testament to the decline of our culinary tastes over the last 70+ years.)

Regards,
robert@thenewisistheater.com

___________________

So, I hope this teacher has a lot of luck with this latest attempt to restore this long abandoned embarrassing eyesore blight on Fort Worth's only actual tourist attraction. But, if Vegas is taking bets I would not put any money on it happening, anymore than Mineral Wells' Baker Hotel getting renovated.

The Baker Hotel eyesore also seems to regularly re-surface as a renovation project which goes nowhere. I have also received multiple communications about such over the years. At one point I got to take a tour of the Baker Hotel.

The Baker Hotel is a bit more impressive than the New Isis Theater, renovation possibility-wise, but I really do not expect either to have a Grand Re-Opening in my lifetime...

What Happened To The Mineral Wells Baker Hotel Restoration?

Almost 2 years ago, October 15, 2010, to be precise, I blogged about news I read in the soon to be gone Fort Worth Star-Telegram regarding the restoration of the Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells.

Way back near the end of the last century I saw the Baker Hotel for the first time. As I drove into Mineral Wells I was very surprised to see a giant structure looming over the town. And then more surprised to see the structure up close, realizing it was a Ghost Hotel.

Over the years I've been contacted multiple times regarding the Baker Hotel. This was due to the fact that years ago my webpage about the Baker Hotel was the only info about the hotel on the Internet.

That is no longer the case. There are now 6 webpages about the Baker Hotel that Google higher than mine. The #1 Baker Hotel webpage is now Wikipedia's Baker Hotel article.

The Baker Hotel has its own official website. Which Googles in the #2 position.

I've been curious as to the status of the Baker Hotel restoration. The Star-Telegram article of almost 2 years ago led one to think that the restoration plan was solid. Back then the restoration was supposedly underway, with someone named Jeff Trigger behind it, with a $52 million budget being spent to modernize the hotel rooms and return the Baker Hotel's famous features to their original splendor, including the swimming pools.

Well.

Yesterday, someone asked me, via a blog comment on the October 15, 2010 blogging, if I could help him get in contact with Jeff Trigger, because he'd been told that Jeff Trigger was the person to talk to regarding restoring the Baker Hotel.

Below is the referenced comment....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Ballad Of The Baker: Is The Baker Hotel In Mineral Wells Really Being Restored?":

I am a investor that is willing to build the hotel to original state that is to the exacting amount of tile on the wall well what I'm doing here is trying to contact the owner of the grand old lady for purchase. I got as far as entering the old lady with escort of fire marshal and officers for a inspection of the premises and back ground info to me up to a name of a man but i need to contact this JEF T. would anyone know where i can even get any info asap because my goal is to have her finished by the end of 2013 you can contact me at nickolyash@yahoo.com 

Anyone out there have any answers for Mr. Nickolyash?

Ballad Of The Baker: Is The Baker Hotel In Mineral Wells Really Being Restored?

It has been at least 10 years since I first saw the Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells. Soon after I saw the Baker Hotel I made a webpage about it.

At that point in time there was no other webpage devoted to the Baker Hotel, near as I could tell.  So, for years, my webpage about the Baker Hotel Googled in the #1 spot.

That is no longer the case. There is a lot of Baker Hotel info on the Internet in 2010, including a sort of Official Baker Hotel website.

During the years when my webpage about the Baker Hotel Googled #1, causing people to think I was somehow associated with it, I have lost count of the number of emails I've gotten asking me questions about buying the hotel, who owns it, what I'm asking for it. And the weirdest one, asking me to pick someone up, flying in from Los Angeles, at D/FW Airport, and transport them to Mineral Wells to the Baker Hotel.

Over the decades that the Baker Hotel has sat idle, in ever failing health, there have been many rumors about plans to restore it to its former glory.

It appears that this is finally going to happen. And is actually underway, due to the renovation efforts of someone named Jeff Trigger.

Trigger allegedly has a $52 million budget, which he will spend to re-do and modernize the hotel rooms, restore the grand lobby to its heyday splendor, restore the Baker Hotel's outdoor swimming pool and mineral bath. With an indoor floor dedicated to what made Mineral Wells famous. Its mineral water.

The Baker Hotel renovation project is far enough along that a movie is being made of the effort, called The Ballad of the Baker. The Ballad of the Baker even has a website. That is a snapshot from the website in the picture above. You can go to the website and view videos of the movie trailer and the Baker Hotel renovation.

I feel like taking a short roadtrip out to Mineral Wells and verifying this project is actually underway. I've been burned by this type news before. Like being told, quite earnestly, that the New Isis Theater Eyesore in the Fort Worth Stockyards is being renovated. Years later the New Isis is a worse eyesore than ever.

I hope the new Baker Hotel is able to make a go of it. Will the mineral springs still be able to attract visitors? There really is not a lot going on in Mineral Wells, tourist hotspot-wise, that would seem to draw people, besides the novelty of the restored hotel. Maybe this will turn Mineral Wells into a tourist town, with shops and galleries and good restaurants.

The Baker Hotel In Mineral Wells May Be Brought Back To Life

In the picture you are in Mineral Wells on top of a Palo Pinto Mountain, looking at the Baker Hotel.

I really think the Palo Pinto Mountains should be more accurately named the Palo Pinto Hills.

A few months after my Exile in Texas began I was out and about exploring the territory and was surprised to come upon a little town named Mineral Wells that had a gigantic abandoned hotel sitting in its downtown zone.

A year or two after first seeing it I made a webpage about the Baker Hotel on my Eyes on Texas website.

Over the years I've received several emails from people interested in buying and restoring the Baker Hotel. Asking if I knew who to contact. One or two were befuddled into thinking I was directly involved with the Baker Hotel. I remember one person was flying in from Los Angeles and asked if I could meet them and take them to the Baker Hotel.

Well, the Baker Hotel has been in the local news the past few days due to a fresh effort to restore the Baker Hotel (and Mineral Wells) to its former glory. Apparently $54 million has to be found. Officials in Mineral Wells and a development team are trying to put all the puzzle pieces together to turn the former 450 room hotel into a 4 star resort of 155 rooms, with the top floor ballroom restored and a spa with the waters that made Mineral Wells famous.

This is not the first time I've read that the long neglected Baker Hotel was going to get fixed.

Three years ago I wrote the following on my website about efforts to restore the hotel...

"After over 3 decades of floundering in an ever increasing state of decay, with numerous attempts by many to find some way to develop the Baker Hotel for a modern use, the city of Mineral Wells has, as of November, 2007, taken an active role in trying to restore the hotel to its former glory. The city has created a tax increment finance district hoping to entice potential developers to re-vitalize the Baker. The city has a 14 month agreement with the hotel's current owner to aggressively market the building to developers. The city will be doing feasibility and building examinations for the next 2 months. We can save them some trouble, the structure is sound, but it desperately needs a new roof."

I hope it all works out, this time, and the Baker Hotel is restored. And I hope the restoration stays true to the Baker Hotel's art deco style.

The Fort Worth Stockyards New Isis Theater Travesty & The Baker Hotel In Mineral Wells Travesty

That is the New Isis Theater on Main Street in the Fort Worth Stockyards National Historic District.

I was appalled at this Isis Eyesore the first time I saw it, over a decade ago. I wondered then why the city code people did not make the owner fix it up. As in put windows in the boarded over windows. And a few other cosmetic fixes.

This was to be one of my early lessons in how things operate different in Texas than what I was used to.

Years passed, I started my Eyes on Texas website. On that website there is a page, long neglected, that I called Texas Tacky, basically chronicling examples of things I came across, in Texas, that seemed tacky to me.

On June 7, 2007 I got an email from Robert Adams telling me the New Isis Theater was currently being renovated, with the renovation to be completed in 14-16 months. You can go to the Texas Tacky link and read Robert's email. It's an amusing one, due to the seat info about Big Texans.

This morning I got email from Lauren regarding the New Isis Theater.

Lauren said...

"Wanting info on the Isis theater? Any new info? That email was in 2007....just in case "Robert" lost track of time, it's 2010....few months my a$$... "

It has been a few months since I last eye-witnessed the fact that the New Isis is an even bigger eyesore than when I first lay my sore eyes on it, over 10 years ago.

I wonder how many raids the Fort Worth Gestapo Stormtroopers have made on the New Isis Theater? Yes, I know, it is not nearly as bad a bad thing in public view as Steve Doeung's Protest Art that has earned him 3 citations from the FW Gestapo, with fines attached.

And in another email about another eyesore, a really cool looking eyesore, that is not in Fort Worth, that being the Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells. When I first saw the Baker Hotel it was one of the strangest things I'd ever come across. This enormous building in this small, sort of run-down town.

It was not as easy to find info on the Internet a decade ago, as it is now. I don't know if Google had yet been invented. For a long time my webpage about the Baker Hotel Googled #1 because there was so little info about it. Now you can find a lot of Baker Hotel info on the Internet.

The Baker Hotel came to my attention this morning due to an email from Connie. I'll copy the email below in case anyone other there has a suggestion for Connie.

To Whom It May Concern:

I have several old pictures of the Baker Hotel and several pieces of China that has the Baker Hotel Logo on it. I don't really know who to contact about these items. Could someone help me? And if you are interested in the items, please contact me.

Thank you,

Connie Harrington
Phone # 918-422-5406

Mineral Wells Baker Hotel May Be Saved

In my first year in Texas, when it was still all new to me and I was still enjoying going out and about and exploring my new world, I came upon the town of Mineral Wells, about 40 miles west of Fort Worth.

Before driving into Mineral Wells I went to Mineral Wells State Park and discovered my first scenic thing in Texas, that being Penitentiary Hollow. Penitentiary Hollow is a maze of cliffs and caves where a lot of rock climbing takes place.

After I was done exploring the state park I drove into Mineral Wells. Ahead of me I saw this giant, totally out of place, building. When I got back to a computer I quickly learned it was the infamous Baker Hotel. A resort hotel that sprang up in the 1920s which attracted all sorts of celebrities, drawn to the supposed curative powers of what was called Crazy Water.

Years later, in the 60s, it was discovered that Crazy Water's curative powers came from the naturally occurring lithium present in the water. The government shut it down. The Baker Hotel gradually died.

Over the years there have been attempts to restore the Baker Hotel. Always with good intentions. But it always falls apart. The latest attempt was announced yesterday. It seems like this attempt might be viable. The plan is to remodel the Baker Hotel into a mixed use building with various levels of senior type housing and elderly care.

I'm guessing that once the renovation plan is costed out the people interested will decide it's not viable. I hope not, though.