MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - New life will soon fill an old fire station in Memphis. In May, the Young Actors Guild bought the building with plans to transform the spot into an arts center for the children of Orange Mound.
For almost a decade Fire Station 22 has sat vacant along Lamar Avenue. The old fire house in desperate need of repair.
The for sale sign in the yard recently caught the eye of Chrysti Chandler. Her vision, transform this dilapidated building into an arts center for the community of Orange Mound.
The sale price from the City of Memphis was $1.
Chrysti Chandler founded the Young Actors Guild in 1991. A place for young artist to hone and refine their talents.
“A lot of our students, they come from Orange Mound, they come from Bethel Grove and a lot of them don’t have access to public transportation,” said Chandler.
It’s why this old fire station is the perfect spot for the Young Actors Guild newest location -- a space for the kids of Orange Mound to dance, sing and perform musical theater.
“We are about bringing the art where the children are making it accessible to them. That’s what’s important,” said Sabrina Norwood, the executive director of Young Actors Guild.
Some of their students have even gone to take center stage from Broadway to TV competitions like American Idol even touring with artist Jennifer Lopez and Missy Elliott.
“When you see children excited then that’s when children are able to dream again and that’s what we want them to do. We want them to be able to imagine” said Norwood.
Thursday morning the Young Actors Guild will break ground at the fire station with plans for the project to be complete by 2021.