Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Abandoned Elementary School to Get $30.5M Renovation

  • By Matt Jones
  • 12/14/21

Windmill Street Elementary School in Providence, R.I., has sat abandoned for more than a decade. The building has experienced three fires within the last four months, as well as years’ worth of vandalism, graffiti, broken windows, and broken fences and doors. Now, the facility is set for a $30.5-million renovation project that will allow it to open its doors to students once again.

City Councilman Nicholas Narducci announced the start of the project last week. Funding was allocated last year as part of a $160-million bond approved by voters in 2018 and an additional $140-million school projects bond passed in November 2020.

The city is partnering with Eastman/Perkins Architects and Bacon Construction Co. for the design, construction and demolition work. Other tasks include asbestos removal, window replacement, playground equipment replacement and more. The project is currently scheduled for completion in fall 2023.

“When I was about 10 years old, my grandad was the boiler man, the fireman at this building, and I remember my dad taking me here for the first time to see my grandfather,” said Anthony Rao, former student, PE teacher, and eventually principal of Windmill Street Elementary School. “Such an enormous school it was for a 10-year-old child to see.”

According to local news, mayoral candidate Gonzalo Cuervo said that he’d prefer to see the building not just renovated, but “redesigned in a way that responds to the modern needs of education,” including preschool, afterschool programs and recreational activities. “Simply remodeling an 80-year-old building—it’s still an 80-year-old building,” he said.

Officials have announced that, after the building is completed, it will be used as a swing space to house students whose home schools are under construction. On a longer timeline, the city plans to open it as its own dedicated school facility once again.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Northeastern University Breaks Ground on New Housing Community

    Northeastern University recently announced the groundbreaking of a new student housing community on its campus in Boston, Mass., according to a news release. The university is partnering with American Campus Communities (ACC) for development of the project, which will have the capacity for 1,200 students and has a scheduled completion date of fall 2028.

  • Wold Architects & Engineers Acquires VPS Architecture

    Full-service planning, architecture, and engineering firm Wold Architects & Engineers recently announced that it has acquired VPS Architecture, according to a news release. The move will help strengthen Wold’s education and public-sector design expertise, industries in which both companies have strong pre-existing ties and relationships.

  • Hawaii Elementary School Breaks Ground on New Classroom Building

    Kealakehe Elementary School in Kailua, Hawaii, recently began construction on a new, $16-million classroom building for its campus, according to a news release. The 13,000-square-foot building will stand two stories and connect the existing upper and lower campuses.

  • California School District Completes Elementary School Modernization

    The San Diego Unified School District in San Diego, Calif., recently held a ribbon-cutting for a whole-site modernization of Pacific Beach Elementary School, according to local news. The school first opened with one building in 1930 and added six more between 1938 and 1957.