Group asks for time on 1922 building
Annandale School Board
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By Tom Westman
Staff Writer
On Monday, Oct. 15, the Annandale School Board held the first of two
public hearings concerning two school buildings no longer needed by the
district. About 25 community members sat down with the board and
Superintendent Steve Niklaus to talk about concerns and the feasibility
of preserving the middle school building built in 1922 and the building
across the street from it, now occupied by Community Education and
preschool classes, at the intersection of Chestnut Street and Cherry
Avenue.
The district has said that once the new elementary school
opens in the fall of 2013, these two buildings will no longer be needed
because the new building will house preschool through fifth grade.
History of 1922 building
The 1922 portion of the
Annandale Middle School building was built in 1922 and housed grades
K-12 until 1960 when the east wing was added. Grades K-6 were then
housed in the new wing. Bendix Elementary was built in 1971 and grades
K-6 moved into that building. From 1971 to 1991, the 1922 wing housed
grades 7-12. When Annandale High School was built in 1991, grades 9-12
moved to the new building and fifth and sixth grade moved from Bendix to
the middle school. From 1991 to the present, grades 5-8 have utilized
the building.
Since 2010, only the first floor of the 1922
building has been used, housing fifth grade classrooms. Additions to the
1922 building were made in 1954, 1960, 1978, 1980 and 1991. The 1922
wing takes up 27 percent of the Annandale Middle School footprint,
according to Niklaus.
Community Ed building
The
Community Education building was built in 1957 as Marv's Red Owl. In
1996 Marv Marohn opened The Marketplace at the intersection of Excelsior
and Highway 55. According to Niklaus, the building Marohn abandoned was
"more or less given to the school district," which then received a state
grant to remodel the 10,000 square foot grocery store.
"Other
than a new roof, very little district money went into the building,"
Niklaus said. It is expected that the school district will sell the
building, once Community Education moves to the new school.
Eight months requested
The people who attended the hearing
seemed to be more concerned about the demolition of the 1922 Middle
School wing than the future of the Community Education building. It was
the desire to preserve a piece of the community's history that brought
them to the hearing.
"Here we go again," said Jill Bishop, as she
addressed the board. "Four years ago hundreds of people expressed an
interest in saving the 1922 building. There were dozens of letters to
the Advocate, we saw overflow crowds at the public hearings and several
hundred that signed a petition - all expressing their desire
for
the building to be used and not demolished."
Bishop continued by
explaining to the board that she and others have a plan to find an
alternative to demolishing the building.
"What we are asking you
for this evening is your support and cooperation to find a solution
to this issue," Bishop said.
She went on to say that at this
time there is not a concrete plan for the use of the building
but she and other community members would like to have eight months to
come up with a process and plan.
"I see this process having three
distinct challenges: to determine a use, to pay for it and to
maintain it," Bishop said. "I fully understand that in order
for
you (the school district) not to proceed with the demolition, there
needs to be serious progress in these three areas by next summer.
Although there are many suggestions for uses of the building,
none include funding nor the ongoing support, and we do realize any plan
has to include those elements. So in the next eight months, in light of
the significant desire expressed four years ago to save the building, I
would like to ask for your support and cooperation in the
process."
Bishop outlined the kind of board support being sought.
She said those who want to save the 1922 wing would like the board to be
open to a solution and not proceed with the assumption that demolition
is a foregone conclusion. It is also hoped that the school board
will share current information about the building, such as floor plans
and details of the problems with the building. Finally, she asked that
the board have a representative sitting at the table with them as they
go through the process of looking for alternative uses of the
building.
Others speak up
Laura Hood Beckman, South
Haven, suggested that the Minnesota Initiative Foundation might be a
good resource to help with the visioning process. Beckman has been very
involved with the Annandale Community Team, which has been helped
significantly over the years by the Minnesota Initiative Foundation on
many community projects.
Beckman indicated that "private dollars
are available" when a viable project is realized. Speaking about the
school district cooperating with the effort, Beckman said,"We owe it to
the community and taxpayers to have the conversation."
New
school like old one
Beckman opened her comments by stating
the new elementary building, now under construction, is somewhat
reminiscent of the 1922 building, citing the dark brick and large
windows. Niklaus was asked if architects did this intentionally and he
replied by saying, "I have thought the same in looking at the building
for some time, but it was not intentional. I think the folks
back in 1922 had value for natural light and energy consumption
was not a big deal. With the new building - windows and geothermal - we
will have the best of both."
An idea for the building
Barb Lundberg, Annandale, was the only person offering a suggested
use for the 1922 building.
"What about converting the
building into a private, for profit, post secondary trade
school?" Lundberg asked.
Community leader Rose Mary Nelson said,
"Give us an opportunity. I am sure there are many ideas out there that
we have not thought about."
Citing books by Larry Millet, which
illustrated the many architectural treasures that have been torn down
over the years in the Twin Cities area, Nelson added, "In 20 or 30
years, are people around here going to say, 'Why did they tear that
beautiful building down?'"
Some want it torn down
David 'Dub' Ferrell said he does feel some nostalgia for the old
building, "but not enough to save it." Ferrell was in the last class
that graduated from the 1922 building in 1955. His mother graduated from
the school and trained to be a teacher in the building and taught fifth
grade there, also until 1955.
"I hate to see public money spent
on that building. The same people that want to save this building, voted
to build a new building and tear down Bendix," Ferrell said. "In my
opinion, Bendix would have been worth saving. I want you to tear it
down."
Renovations will be costly
At the end of the
meeting Nicklaus laid out a list of items that would have to be done to
make the 1922 building useable:
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The heating and air conditioning systems would have to be upgraded to
meet code.
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The electrical system is very outdated and needs to be upgraded as well.
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The building is essentially a wood framed building under the bricks,
which could be a fire hazard.
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The building has not had a new roof since 1957, although is was patched
in 2002.
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There is a considerable amount of asbestos material in the building,
which would need to be removed before it could be safely occupied.
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There are open stairwells going to the second and third floors, which
are considered a fire hazard.
Beckman asked the Niklaus if they
still had the figures for what the costs would be for
updating the 1922 building. Niklaus indicated that he did not have those
figures with him at the meeting.
No response from board
The school board did not take action nor did they respond to any of
the concerns or questions brought up at the hearing.
"There will
be no formal action by the board until after the second hearing,"
Niklaus said. "It is unclear just when the full board will respond as
there are no meetings scheduled until the Monday, Nov. 26, meeting and
they can only respond as a board."
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This was the first public hearing scheduled by the school district on
the 1922 building. The second hearing is scheduled for Monday,
Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. in the Annandale Middle School choir room.