LAKELAND, Fla. — Over the hills of Florida Southern’s campus, the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel stands as the cornerstone of renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s legacy.

“This is an example of probably the best block work in his career,” resident Architect Jeffery Baker said.

Baker says the chapel, built in 1941, is a testament to Wright’s ability to design extraordinary structures that can withstand Florida’s weather. But over time, he says, parts of the building have become difficult to maintain.

“One of reasons is because he designed architecture… was very avant garde. It was something that was completely different and he was constantly testing the limits of materials,” Baker said. “As a result, the quality control wasn’t fantastic and so therefore some of these buildings are difficult to keep water out of at least at the ground level, especially through those textile blocks that you’re seeing behind me.”

Crews repair the ceiling of the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel following damage from Hurricanes Milton and Debby. (Florida Southern College)

After Hurricanes Milton and Debby last year, water from surrounding areas flooded toward the chapel, damaging the floors. Heavy rain also caused parts of the ceiling to chip away. Terry Dennis, vice president of finance and administration, says the school spent well over six figures in repairs. While crews worked inside, staff had to find other locations to host scheduled events.

“If there was a very large event that was scheduled for here, we probably moved it out because the balcony is where we had the most challenge to cosmetically go in and repair the things that might’ve been plastered, beginning to drip, etc.,” Dennis said.

Since then, Baker says they’ve been able to restore most of the chapel using modern materials, but there’s still more work to be done.

“What’s left to be down here would be the skylight. A little bit of steel repair needs to happen up there too. Not structural steel, but more decorative steel around the skylight up above,” he said.

Architect Frank Lloyd Wright at work on the design of the iconic Annie Pfeiffer Chapel. (Florida Southern College)

As long as the repairs are done properly, Baker is confident the building will withstand this upcoming hurricane season—and many more to come.

In February, Florida Southern filed a lawsuit against Tremco Construction Products Group for its role in installing the chapel’s roof system back in 2011. The complaint claims Tremco supplied the roofing materials and oversaw the installation, which later led to water leaks.

School officials declined to comment on the lawsuit. In a statement, Beaman & Brown PLLC, the firm representing Tremco CPG, said:

“Tremco provided materials for the roof at Annie Pfeiffer Chapel, which were installed by a roofing contractor. Tremco issued a long-term warranty to the University, and Tremco intends to stand behind that warranty, as it always does. Consistent with that, when we became aware of this lawsuit, we reached out to the University’s counsel and expressed Tremco’s desire to work with the University to come up with a solution for any water intrusion issues at the Chapel, some or all of which may not relate to the roof. To develop that solution, Tremco plans to conduct a thorough inspection of the Chapel in the next month. We certainly understand the cultural significance of the Chapel and hope to partner with the University to repair and/or improve the Chapel’s exterior (consistent with the terms of our warranty).”