The City of Key West is moving forward with work on the Diesel Plant in Bahama Village. The beloved mural on the building will be temporarily relocated while the two non-historic portions of the building are demolished. The mural will be stored safely until the building is restored.

The demolition is the first step to ensuring that the historic structure is shored up for preservation. This step leads the way to issuing a request for proposals for the eventual rehabilitation of the site.

The plant was originally built in the late 1800s to generate gas used for lighting homes, businesses, and streets. It was decommissioned in the 1960s. In the early 2000s, the community voted to accept the transfer of ownership of the building from Keys Energy to the City of Key West.

The site consists of several buildings, two of which have no historic value. By removing them, the historic part of the building will be accessible for shoring up, if necessary. The City’s Chief Building Official Raj Ramsingh is overseeing the work.

The plant is adjacent to the land where the affordable housing project The Lofts is about to be constructed. Both parcels are next to the Truman Waterfront Park.

​City officials are looking for interest from the public to redevelop the plant in a way that ensures the preservation of the historic building while enhancing the neighborhood.

​The playground at the Truman Waterfront Park has been completely resurfaced and it looks like a brand new park. The City of Key West’s Community Services Department stripped away the old surface, replacing it with a layer of Flexi-Pave, a soft, safe, porous material.

The Key West Art Center proudly presents the 57th annual Old Island Days Art Festival at the beautiful Truman Waterfront Park. This year’s show brings back some of your favorite artists and will introduce you to many new talented ones. The waterfront setting has given us the opportunity to set up more booths and our artists responded with over 110 artists scheduled to attend.

Artists and crafters will line the quay showing watercolors, oil/acrylic, mixed media, photography, and more works for your home. In addition, you will find jewelry, clothing, sculpture, glass, and wood along with plenty of fun funky tropical arts and crafts. This group of artists has something for every taste and budget, and we hope you will stop down to stroll the waterfront and meet this great group of artists, some of whom have traveled from as far as the west coast, and others much more local.

Drive, bike, walk or bus down to see us as there is plenty of parking and bike racks and we are steps away from the Duval Loop stop. Artists will greet you from 10-5 each day. We look forward to seeing all our locals and visitors for a wonderful art filled weekend!

The Old Island Days Art Festival is sponsored by the Key West Art Center & Gallery, located at 301 Front Street. The non-profit Community Art Center is Key West’s oldest gallery and features original works of art by over 50 local artists.

​For more information contact us at 305-294-1241 or email at KWArtShow@gmail.com