Purchase Price $80,000
31,619 sqft
Washington School is cleaned out and ready for rehab. The school is located at 1015 N. 5th St. It was once 12 apartments and can be apartments once again, or anything you can imagine. The Eckel designed building is a cement structure. There is a gymnasium with a stage for entertainment/performances, movies or displays and space to make a great restaurant too. MLS: 2146235
Contact: Lisa Rock - Re/Max, Call: 816-262-8462.
Read the entire fascinating story here…
Historic Washington School is the work of renowned St. Joseph architect E.J. Eckel making it a true piece of St. Joseph history. This neo-colonial school was built in 1909 as part of a building spree undertaken by the St. Joseph School District in response to rapidly growing enrollments.
The current structure is the second Washington School to sit on this site. In 1909 the decision was made to demolish the existing structure and to build a larger building on the site. Noted St. Joseph architectural firm of Eckel and Boschen were awarded the contract to design the school and local contractor J.W. Lehr was engaged to build the new building. A budget of $35,000 was allocated for the structure. There were significant cost overruns, and the architect E.J. Eckel had to appear in front of the school board to justify what was seen as excessive use of structural steel and iron.
In 1952, as a result of changing standards in education, the School District made improvements to Washington School. Its playground was graded and two inches of bituminous coating was applied. That same year the School District engaged the architectural firm of Eckel and Aldrich (Eckel had been the original architect of the building) to alter the configuration of the basement to incorporate a “Crippled Children’s Room.”
As the city entered the 1970s, shifting residential patterns meant that Washington School was experiencing declining enrollment. In 1973 the decision was taken to close the elementary school. Its students were divided between Humboldt and Webster Schools. The building did service for two additional years as a temporary middle school until Robidoux Middle School was completed. The School District abandoned the structure in 1974.
Since 1974, the building has suffered from varying degrees of neglect. There was a short-lived attempt to use it as a multi-family residential space (the remains of some of the apartments are still intact) and more recently it served as a sort of warehouse for a wholesale pet fish business. It has been empty for approximately five years.
As a historic building, Washington School is eligible for local grants such as the Save Our Heritage grant. The nomination process to have the structure listed on the National Register is well underway and the seller will share those materials and provide guidance on how to complete the process. The original blue prints done by Eckel as well as some alterations will be provided to the buyer.
