HISTORIC DEUTSCHTOWN — Normally known as the scene for banjo night performances, bingo nights and Mardi Gras celebrations, the Allegheny Elks Lodge played host to a very different kind of event on May 8 as the social club launched an effort to renovate their 100-year-old lodge building.
At the event, Lodge in Bloom, attendees dressed in formal wear and enjoyed several rounds of fine wine tasting guided by lodge member and sommelier Cory Hart, while bidding on artwork, donated prizes and experiences.
“They wanted to go high-end,” Allegheny Elks President Shawn Melvin said of the event’s organization committee. “Let’s show people what this place can look like.”
Though the Elks are no strangers to raising money — usually for various good causes such as their Christmas charities campaign or their scholarship program — Lodge in Bloom was a fundraiser for the Elks themselves. The organization is planning a total refurbishing of their lodge building, one that is hoped to not just beautify the structure but also open up numerous opportunities for the group and establish new event spaces on the Northside.
Lodge in Bloom was aimed at fundraising the final $50,000 toward the first phase of this renovation: a restructuring of the building’s front porch. The planned scope of this first phase, which will cost $300,000 in total, includes restoration of the building’s main entry doors, cleaning and repairing of masonry and brick steps on the face, restoration and repair of light fixtures and the addition of a chair lift and new sidewalk entry for Americans with Disabilities Act compliance.
However, the Elks have much loftier ambitions. The social group is planning an estimated $16 million total renovation of the lodge, including returning the building’s grand ballroom and rooftop garden venue into operational order.
Elks leadership viewed Lodge in Bloom as a kickoff to this entire effort, and a way to get membership thinking of raising funds for the renovations.
“Once you start down the path, you really want to keep the momentum going,” said Tim Zinn, the Allegheny Elks Lodge Historian.
Zinn said the fundraiser was a way to let people and potential funders know that the lodge is “serious” in its effort, which will help when the social club makes future, larger requests for money.
As a historian, Zinn is keen to see that the renovation retains the historic character of the lodge. The building, designed by renowned local architect Edward B. Lee, was opened on March 5, 1926. Zinn said the refurbishment will “Get back to the bones of the building” and return it to its classical look, while accepting modern conveniences, such as the planned installation of an elevator.
Of particular interest to Zinn is the possibility of reopening the lodge’s rooftop garden venue, which was popular during the “height of the flapper era.” As for why the lodge is launching this effort now, Allegheny Elks Building Revitalization Chair Carly Dobbins-Bucklad told The Chronicle that a certain factor played into the start of the project.
“You need to have leadership who are willing to put the time in, and the lodge has that right now,” she said.
Further, Dobbins-Bucklad said the Allegheny Elks is growing in membership, and has become a “cultural hub” on the Northside. With that kind of prestige, as well as the lodge celebrating the 100th anniversary of its building this year, beginning a renovation effort made sense to undertake.
Overall, Elks leadership was happy with the outcome of Lodge in Bloom. According to Melvin, the event was “close to sellout,” with only a single digit number of tickets left. As for what exactly comes next, Lodge in Bloom Host Committee Member Sally Graubarth said the Elks hope to hold a party just before the work on the porch begins, with a follow up event taking place once it is complete as a kind of “before and after” of the first stage of renovations.
The Allegheny Elks also hope to hold more fundraising events, possibly some in the style of Lodge in Bloom, as the grand renovation project continues. Those wanting more information should keep an eye on the Allegheny Elks’ website, alleghenyelks339.weebly.com.
