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Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building facts for kids

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Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building
Lubbock Texas Old Federal Courthouse.jpg
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building in 2012
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building is located in Texas
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building
Location in Texas
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building is located in the United States
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building
Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building
Location in the United States
Location 800 Broadway, Lubbock, Texas
Area less than one acre
Built 1931 (1931)
Built by William McDonald Construction Co.
Architect James A. Wetmore
Architectural style Classical Revival
NRHP reference No. 95000101
Added to NRHP February 17, 1995

The Lubbock Post Office and Federal Building, located at 800 Broadway in downtown Lubbock, Texas, was a post office and federal courthouse from 1932-1968.

History

Federal funds were obtained through the Public Buildings Act of 1926 to construct a new federal courthouse in Lubbock, Texas. Construction began in 1931 and the building was completed in 1932 at a cost of $4.7 million. The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas met here until 1968, after which time it was used by Lubbock County for offices and storage. A lack of proper building maintenance led to its abandonment in 1998.

The building was nominated and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. In 2011, Preservation Texas, a nonprofit preservation group, listed it as one of the most endangered historic sites in Texas.

In 2013, Lubbock's Commissioners Court put the building up for sale and Appaloosa Development of Lubbock offered $500,000 but then backed out of the deal. More recently John Thompson (Austin) and Jeff Sagansky (New York) of Elm Tree Partners and John Snyder (Oklahoma) have offered $425,000 for the 28,000 sq ft (2,600 m2) building. The offer was accepted by Lubbock County Commissioners and plans are to convert the building to apartment or hotel rooms, dining, or office space.

Architectural description

The 3-story building was designed in the late Classical Revival style, which can be seen in its symmetrical plan and its ornamentation. While the first floor has a limestone exterior, the second and third floors have a buff brick exterior designed to resemble an Italian Renaissance palazzo.

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