According to the Tampa Daily Times, the land for this building was acquired by S.H. Kress & Co. in 1912 with a plan to complete construction of a “fine store” within a year. The Burgert photo is labeled, “Construction work at S. H. Kress and Company store at 1624 East Broadway”, taken in 1928, possibly for the new sign installation. Kress and many retailers in Ybor City closed up shop in the 1960s. The Gonzmart family, owners of the historic Columbia Restaurant, purchased the building in 1983 for $100,000 and sold it in 1992 to developer Jack Shiver for $850,000.

Shiver hoped to open a retail store and a restaurant where the former Kress lunch counter once stood. That plan never came to fruition. After a $1.7 million renovation, Shiver signed a 10-year lease with the U.S. Customs Service in 1995, and the agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, remained until the early 2020s. Developer Darryl Shaw purchased the building and, after a major rehab, opened the Kress Contemporary, a collection of arts organizations, galleries & artist studios of all disciplines.

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