Members of the Charlottesville City Council are embroiled in a debate over what to do with the historical Jefferson School in downtown Charlottesville.
At its meeting next Monday, the Council officially will take over the deed to the school from the Charlottesville School Board.
For years, the fate of the first local high school for blacks in Charlottesville has been a source of community concern.
"Our goal has always been centered around the best way to preserve Jefferson and turn it from being an aging and underutilized facility to a site in which the entire community can take great pride," Charlottesville Mayor Blake Caravati said.
The building, currently under the control of the Charlottesville School Board, has hosted the Jefferson Pre-school since 1995.
The city's plans to renovate the Jefferson school were delayed by concerns of "how to fund a complete renovation of the Jefferson School, which would cost upwards of $8 million, and where to locate the preschool program," Caravati said.
On Jan. 17, the School Board announced it would move the preschool into the local elementary schools and relinquish the Jefferson School deed to the City Council "because they have the expertise and staff," School Board chairman Richard M. Merriwether said.
Several proposals exist for what to do with the 4th Street landmark, said Elizabeth Sargent, who is a board member of Preservation Piedmont, a regional non-profit organization that hopes to have the Jefferson School listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Listing the building on the register would make it eligible for federal rehabilitation tax credits that would cover 50 percent of the renovation costs, Sargent said.
In exchange, however, the city "would have to respect aspects of the site's integrity," thus limiting its practical use, she said.
Another popular option is that the building continue to function as a school, Merriwether said.
"What the community would like is for the Jefferson School to be refurbished as an educational center," he said.
Despite speculation to the contrary, the building will not be demolished, Caravati said.
"That's been a rather vile rumor," he said.
The Jefferson School has a long- standing history in downtown Charlottesville.
Established in 1894 as the Jefferson Grade School, the site was a fixture in the Vinegar Hill neighborhood that housed much of Charlottesville's black population.
During the 1920s, the "Old Jefferson" was demolished.
A new building, Jefferson High School, constructed on the same site, opened its doors in 1927.
The school was Charlottesville's first and only black high school until the opening of Burley High School in 1951.
In 1959, nine former Jefferson students were among the first in Virginia to attend white schools, helping to end segregation on a local and statewide level.
During the 1960s the city underwent a program of urban renewal.
The program involved the demolition of many Vinegar Hill establishments. However, the Jefferson School, survived.
"This school symbolizes to the city of Charlottesville a great deal of hurt and pain that arose from slavery, segregation, Jim Crowe and urban renewal," Caravati said.
Read More
From the Archives: Celebration and Reflection (4/28 - 5/4)
By Clara Franklin and Annabelle Nee | 9 hours agoFrom The Purple Shadows breaking into the Dean of Students’s office to multiple student athletes accused of honor code violations, the graduating class’s four years were a wild ride.
PBS NewsHour correspondent speaks on bringing humanity to international conflict
By Grace Little | YesterdaySchifrin's work exploring Putin’s Russia, his coverage of COVID-19 and his reporting in Afghanistan and Ukraine have earned him various accolades.
Spring meal swipe drive aims to tackle food insecurity at the University
By Nicolas Biernacki | YesterdayU.Va. Dine facilitated the drive by converting each meal swipe donated by a student into one pound of food that is then donated to the CFP.
