Public Input Sought for Future of Nathan Clifford School
9/19/2012 -
Public Input Sought for Future of Nathan Clifford School
Public invited to share thoughts on possible uses for vacant school
What: Next month, the City of Portland and the Nathan Clifford Re-Use Advisory Task Force will host a meeting seeking public input on the future of the Nathan Clifford School at 180 Falmouth Street. Earlier this year, the school was declared surplus by the Portland Public Schools and is currently vacant. The Portland City Council created the Task Force to recommend preferred uses for the property in anticipation of prioritizing future proposals for the re-use and/or redevelopment of the school and grounds. As part of their work, the Task Force is seeking the opinions and insights from neighbors, former students and teachers, preservationists, real estate professionals, and anyone interested in the future of the historic property.
Named after US Supreme Court Justice Nathan Clifford, the school was opened to more than two hundred students April 1, 1909. The Justice’s grandson, also named Nathan Clifford, served as Portland’s Mayor in 1906 when the school’s construction began. Designed by renowned architect John Calvin Stevens and his son, John Howard Stevens, the Nathan Clifford School is a three-story building constructed of buff brick at a cost of $135,057. The building, which totals 44,288 square feet, contains 16 classrooms laid out in an H-shape, with one classroom anchoring each corner of the structure.
City of Portland staff and Task Force members will present information on the current condition of the building as well as ideas for re-use. The public is invited to provide additional ideas and will be asked to prioritize uses for the City Council’s consideration.
Results from the meeting and the Task Force’s recommendation will be reported to the City Council’s Housing and Community Development Committee at a future meeting.
For more information, visit the city’s website.
When: Tuesday, October 2, 2012
5:30 PM
Where: City Hall, Room 209
Portland
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