JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A house in St. Augustine that was once a safe haven for civil rights activists will be moved to a different location Thursday morning. Segregationists vandalized, shot up and fire bombed the house thinking Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would be inside... he never was.
The relocation for the 'Canright' house begins at 9 a.m.; it will be moved to a park in West Augustine from where it is currently located on Atlantic View in Crescent Beach.
A couple - David Manaute and Patti Berry - initially purchased the house and wanted to build around it, but their requests for a variance was ultimately denied. After trying multiple times to get their designs approved, their options were to either demolish the house or move it. Eventually, the couple was able to get a grant to move it, as the St. Johns County Board of Commissioners said they would pay for the additional space to relocate the house.
"It was, it was eminent," said Troy Blevins who is organizing the house's move. "This was gonna happen. I mean, the owners were kind of at their end into their rope of what they can do with the house. This house was going to be, it was going to be demoed."
The Canright house is expected to be relocated to West Augustine by Sunday. Thursday's process will take 3-4 hours. The house will be moved from Atlantic View to Matanzas Avenue, then move north on State Road A1A to Weff Road.
For Sunday, relocation for the house will begin at 8 a.m. and take 6-10 hours.