THEBUILDING
This building is a spatial manifestation of our national legacy of violence and racial terror. As the United States moves towards dismantling systems of oppression, this project is an opportunity to declare our collective agency in designing a just future for all.
In the map:
One of the last remaining purpose-built KKK buildings.
The Program (preliminary) (
The building will house programs that support:
Truth-telling and Restorative Justice:
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CIVIL RIGHTS EXHIBITION GALLERIES dedicated to racial, gender, sexuality, and economic justices, to work in concert with local school districts’ curricula and programming.
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MEETING SPACES for racial equity and leadership trainings.
Storytelling and Personal + Community Response:
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THEATER AND EVENT SPACE for local and touring culturally-specific and social justice oriented artists and groups.
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DANCE STUDIO AND REHEARSAL ROOM purpose built to provide training for underserved youth and early career performing artists.
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STORYBOOTHS in the lobby and exhibition galleries for visitors to tell their own accounts of Fort Worth and the region, to be broadcast on monitors throughout the building.
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AMPHITHEATER AND PUBLIC PARK to increase transparency and shift the perception of the building from exclusivity and secrecy to civility and community.
Economic Development (to support under resourced areas in the city, especially serving Black, Hispanic, and immigrant communities and businesses):
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AFFORDABLE LIVE/WORK SPACE for economically challenged artists, artisans, and entrepreneurs with potential for mixed-income housing and permanent supportive housing.
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TOOL LIBRARY + MAKERSPACE to provide local residents with equitable access to DIY equipment and workspace.
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MARKETPLACE to help alleviate North Side food deserts while providing small business incubator services to local farmers, artisans, and micro-enterprises.
Ancillary Spaces
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WAREHOUSE SPACE + STORAGE + OFFICES + KITCHEN + REST ROOMS
Services
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CIRCULATION + MECHANICAL
THE SUPPORT
The project has received widespread support including Fort Worth and Texas chapters of the NAACP, Congressman Marc Veasey (D-TX), National Trust for Historic Preservation, City of Fort Worth leadership, local clergy, local arts organizations, faculty from Texas Christian University and the University of Texas-Arlington, President of Minnesota College of Art and Design, Curator of Jewish Museum of Milwaukee, and the International Coalition for Sites of Conscience, of which we are a member.
In October 2021, Transform 1012 received Urban Land Institute of Dallas-Fort Worth’s 2021 Next Big Idea Award, recognizing innovative ideas that can positively impact the region’s quality of life. In May 2022, Historic Fort Worth put Transform 1012 on the annual “Endangered List.” In November 2023, the Texas Society of Architects awarded Transform 1012 with a “Citation of Honor” in recognition of significant contributions in supporting the creation of safe, beautiful, equitable, and sustainable environments and communities in Texas.
Project support comes from Rainwater Charitable Foundation; Atmos Energy, as part of their Fueling Safe and Thriving Communities initiative 2022 & 2023; Tecovas Foundation 2022 & 2023; The Ford Foundation 2022 & 2023; North Texas Community Foundation, Fund to Advance Racial Equity; Congressional Community Project Funding 2022 & 2023; MASS Design Group, Catalyst Grant; Mellon Foundation 2022, 2023 & 2024; National Endowment for the Arts “Arts Projects” 2022 & 2023; National Endowment for the Arts “Our Town” 2023; TurningPoint Foundation 2023, 2024, & 2025; DuBose Family Foundation; Simons Foundation; Ben E. Keith Foundation 2023, 2024 & 2025; as well as over 100 individual donors. If you would like to contribute, please visit our Donate page HERE.
THE CONTEXT:
1924 TO THE PRESENT
In 1924, construction began on Ku Klux Klan Klavern No. 101’s Auditorium as a monument to hate and terror. Then—as well as now—members of targeted cultural groups needed to pass the building to access the North Side and surrounding areas when traveling to and from downtown Fort Worth.
The building was a daily reminder of power and politics; the looming edifice was yet another form of policing behavior, movement, culture, and proving again how architecture is capable of violence.
Timeline
1924
The cornerstone is laid for Ku Klux Klan Klavern No 101’s Auditorium (then known as 1006 N. Main Street). The building was designed by Earl Glasgow and destroyed by fire when it was either bombed or suffered an electrical fire.
1925
Ku Klux Klan Klavern No. 101 rebuilds the damaged building with five tall windows on the front facade and a scenery fly loft in the rear for theatrical performances, including racist, sexist, and anti-immigrant minstrel shows.
1927
The building was sold to Leonard Brothers Department Store. By 1929 it was called North Main Street Auditorium and used as a dance marathon venue, concert hall, and a wrestling arena.
1946
Purchased by Ellis Pecan Company in 1946 for warehouse space for shelling pecans.
1999
Ellis Pecan Company vacates the building. The property has remained abandoned since then.
2004
The building was purchased by Sugarplum Holdings, L.P., a group of private investors, it was intended to be used as the rehearsal studios for Texas Ballet Theatre.
2021
Transform 1012 N. Main Street acquired the building through a significant donation from the former owners and a generous grant from the Rainwater Charitable Foundation.
2023
B-arn-S Architects + ch_studio were selected to be the design architects of The Fred Rouse Center.