Another day, another proposed demolition. And so it is in Atlanta...
The latest building rumored for demolition is the "New" Grant Park School, constructed in 1930 on the site of an earlier school by the same name. According to the Atlanta Preservation Alliance Facebook page, plans call for demolition of the eight-decade-old facility to make way for a new development.
Currently, the building serves as part of the Atlanta Arts Exchange campus and forms a larger compound with the even older Atlanta Stockade, which dates back to 1896. According to plans released earlier this year, that building will be preserved as part of a 250-unit mix of townhomes, condos, and apartments by Urban Realty Partners.
Located next to Fuqua’s Glenwood Place development, just a hop-and-skip from the future Beltline trail at Bill Kennedy Parkway, the land has become too valuable to remain as is. The writing has been on the wall since the property went up for sale — and then quickly sold last year.
Considering that many old school buildings that have managed to survive the Atlanta wrecking ball thrive today with new purposes, it could be a shame to see this one fall.
However, the death knell does not yet toll. According to Alice Lovelace, President of the Board of Directors of Arts Exchange, the building "will not be demolished." Does this mean there are plans in the works for preservation?
If saved, the building could be added to a growing list of preservation victories like the Bell Building, the Forsyth-Walton Building, Trio Laundry, Engineer’s Bookstore, the Central Library, and (potentially) the old Trust Company Bank.
- Plans Circulating for Atlanta Stockade, Art Exchange Site [Curbed]
- Could Grant Park School Sale Signal Major Development? [Curbed]
- Old Stockade in Grant Park an Adaptive-Reuse Dream? [Curbed]
- How some of Atlanta's historic schools have been repurposed over the years [Curbed]
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