Stop by the William Lowe (Bill) Waller Sr. Craft Center in Ridgeland and you’ll find a gallery filled with traditional and contemporary crafts.
Loaded with baskets, pottery, bowls, quilts, jewelry and more, the sales gallery at the center exhibits the creativity of members of the Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi.
The Mississippi Tourism Association has named the Craft Center not once but twice the Mississippi Travel Attraction of the Year.
It’s been 15 years since the guild moved from a location on the grounds of the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum in Jackson into what was then a new building specifically constructed for it at 950 Rice Road.
Now, the building is badly in need of foundation and HVAC repairs estimated to cost as much as $750,000.
“The problem is the building has gotten old,” said Debby Delashmet of Jackson, a craftsman who works in stained glass and fused glass and serves as president of the guild.
“It’s really cool looking but hard to maintain because it has more than 20,000 square feet and soaring ceilings over 20 feet tall. We’re putting Band-Aids on everything to keep it going.”
The guild leases the building for $1 a year from the state. The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame has a similar lease agreement with the state.
Maintenance and utilities amount to at least $6,100 a month for the craft center and the guild is responsible for paying for that, said Tomeka Hall-Cheatham, interim executive director of the guild, which has less than 400 members.
In 2021, the Legislature, at the urging of Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee, Visit Ridgeland and other supporters, appropriated $100,000 for maintenance.
“Since it is a state-owned building the city of Ridgeland does not have the legal authority make repairs,” McGee said. “We do, however, continue to help lobby the Legislature for funding. We believe this building that is state-owned should be kept up with state funds just like any other state-owned building.”
An architect and engineers employed by the state determined how the $100,000 should be used and that was helpful, Delashmet said.
A giant crack in the floor of the building was repaired, a drainage problem affecting the building’s foundation was solved, a tree that needed to be cut was removed and the gallery’s windows were covered with a film so there’s no danger of sunlight fading textiles and other crafts.
Foundation repairs for the building and HVAC improvements are estimated to cost $750,000, Delashmet said. Repairs to the HVAC system are estimated at $450,000, she said.
The Legislature did not provide funding for the craft center in 2022.
Hall-Cheatham has reached out to the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration and emailed a PowerPoint presentation about the urgent needs of the building.
She hopes that when state government’s new fiscal year starts on July 1 that DFA might have funds for some repairs the building needs.
“We’re keeping our fingers crossed and hoping to get funding to at least help fix our HVAC system and get some more lighting,” Hall-Cheatham said. “We’re grateful for what the state has done for us. My prayer is to get the craft center on the Legislature’s list for annual maintenance help.”
When the building was constructed, several air conditioning units were installed instead of a commercial system with a chiller on the roof, Delashmet said, and the HVAC has always been inadequate.
Because the AC units are old, it’s not uncommon for one to quit working and need repair and then soon after another unit to do the same.
Electrical repairs are needed so the overhead lights work in the upstairs offices and the exterior needs additional lighting to make the building and parking lot user-friendly after dark, Hall-Cheatham said.
More exterior signage that would clearly mark the building for drivers would be helpful, she said.
“We hear all the time from visitors that we need more signage,” Hall-Cheatham said. “Sometimes people tell us they didn’t know what the building was. Other people have said they thought it was a prison. Landscaping would help soften it.”
The city of Ridgeland has helped by paving a parking lot, providing grounds upkeep and changing the light bulbs in fixtures in the parking lot, Delashmet said.
The guild’s operating budget comes from dues that members pay, grants, events such as its annual holiday show known as the Chimneyille Arts Festival, craft classes and its summer camp for children. Rentals of the building for weddings, family reunions, business meetings and other occasions also bring in money.
“We could have more events and rent out more rooms if we had adequate lighting and heat and AC,” Hall-Cheatham said. “Those are things we could have more of if we had an updated HVAC system. Now, it’s so hot the air conditioning stops working in a lot of them.
“We have four rooms where the AC isn’t working adequately or not at all. When people pay their money, they want the best of the best.”
The guild dates to 1973 when Mississippi Gov. Bill Waller set into motion what would result in the organization. Dan Overly, a graduate of Delta State University and a craftsman himself, became the guild’s first executive director. He served until 1995 and was active with the organization until his death in 2009.
Through the years the guild has lost the clout it had in its early days, Delashment said. “We’ve lost some of our champions,” she said.
To make ends meet, the guild operates with just two full-time employees and one part-time and the board of directors has taken on some of the duties that an executive director would handle.
The guild also reduced the hours the craft center is open. The center is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Delashmet said the craft center is named in honor of Gov. Waller and because of that, she would like to ensure the building is well kept.
“We need help to make sure it stays a quality building and a secure building,” she said.
