LIBERTY Old high school is still functional

Officials say the building also could be used for storing equipment.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
LIBERTY -- High school students here got a new place to learn a few years ago, but school officials still have plans for what's left of the building that served as the high school for decades.
The district opened doors to the new high school in 1999. Since that time the old building has been partially demolished, a library has been built on part of its former grounds and the maintenance and transportation departments have called it home.
Anyone -- familiar or unfamiliar with the school's history -- can plainly see where it stood. What remains of the school, the section that served as the gymnasium, stands on a small patch of land clearly visible to those driving along Church Hill Road.
There are few windows remaining. Passers-by can see where other sections of the building once attached to the gym by following the remaining bits of protruding wall and uneven corners.
Superintendent Larry Prince, however, said leaving the small section of the building standing is part of a bigger plan by school officials. He also said the outside of the building may soon be getting a face-lift.
According to Prince, school officials explored a number of options in dealing with the former high school once the doors to the new building opened -- including auctioning off the building.
Prince said selling the building at auction was not a good idea because its age and setup did not make it suitable for most uses. Some parts of the building dated to the 1920s.
Possible uses
The building, Prince said, could serve one purpose for the school board despite its age. It could hold old equipment, stage props and other items for which school officials no longer had space.
Ultimately it was decided to tear the building down, with the exception of one useful section big enough to fill the school district's storage needs -- the gym.
"It is definitely a help to the district to have that storage space," he said. "It will be more functional than aesthetic, but it will certainly meet our goals."
Prince said there is little chance that the building will be used for anything other than storage. All equipment in the gym was auctioned off. The only heating source is an industrial-sized space heater, and the only entrance is a garage-style rolling door.
Prince said touch-up work will be done to the outside of the building to make it somewhat more aesthetically pleasing. When it is completed, he said, the building will be rectangular. All sides where attaching parts were removed will be cleaned up. There will also be landscaping around the building, he said.
Prince said he is unsure when the outside work will be done. He said school officials will fit the cost of the work in between other more pressing financial concerns, but it could be started early next year.
jgoodwin@vindy.com