23
EVENTS
RESTORING A CAMPUS ICON TO ITS
FORMER BEAUTY
B Y TOM D A N I E L
As readers of this magazine know, Stetson University
College of Law was originally built in 1925 as the
Rolyat Hotel. Developer “Handsome Jack” Taylor, a
“Great Gatsby” type character, wanted the hotel to exude opulence.
The Rolyat was designed to replicate a Spanish feudal castle
with buildings surrounding a central plaza. Its many notable
features included a main tower styled to resemble the Torre del
Oro in Seville, roof tiles imported from a Spanish monastery, and
a central fountain that was said to flow with champagne at the
hotel’s celebrity-filled opening on Jan. 1, 1926.
Today, students, faculty and visitors can still enjoy the beauty that
Taylor’s vision gave to this campus. College officials have been
working to restore some of the unique features, beginning with
the fountain in the Plaza Mayor courtyard. This seven-month
endeavor, an official historic restoration, was no small task.
The images in each quadrant of the fountain were cut out, tiles
removed from slab, cleaned, and restored. Other tiles could not
be salvaged, so bisque was imported from Italy and hand-painted
to match the original tile, baked, and then waterproofed. All the
painting was done by the same woman, meaning no two tiles are
exactly alike, just as was true of the originals. RLA Conservation
of Art & Architecture in Miami, Fla., a state certified tile restoration
company, oversaw the work.
With all tile removed, the old fountain shell was taken out and
replaced with an exact replica. The fountain was then equipped
with modern improvements, such as auto water fill, main drain
for proper filtration of water and, to reduce chlorine consumption,
a UV light system for purification of fountain water. SDF
Contracting of St. Petersburg constructed a new pump room and
infrastructure to handle the filtration requirements for this and
the three additional fountains in and around the Plaza.
This type of restoration makes the maintenance of the fountain
far less labor-intensive, said William “Dale” Stubblefield, supervisor
of Grounds and Event Setup. Without the proper filtration
systems, the fountains require water replenishment, skimming
and sweeping to keep clean.
The restoration was primarily made possible by a $500,000
Special Category Grant from the Florida Department of State,
Division of Historical Resources, said Patty Johnson, associate vice
president of Budget and Finance. “We intend to apply for another
grant for the restoration of the other three fountains on campus.”
For now, anyone presented with the opportunity should spend a
moment taking in and enjoying the brilliant restoration work on
Stetson Law’s main fountain. Sadly, at present, there are no plans
to fill it with champagne again.