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Quincy Main Street seeks donated Quincy High School for cultural arts hub; board requests workshop
Summary
Quincy Main Street asked the school board to donate the old Quincy High School so the nonprofit can redevelop it as a cultural-arts destination; the board agreed to schedule a workshop to examine legal and financial implications and to include nearby residents and city officials in discussions.
Chris Crystal May, executive with Quincy Main Street, asked the Gadsden County School Board to consider donating the old Quincy High School so the nonprofit can redevelop the property into a cultural arts hub with studios, museums, a children’s art studio and upstairs apartments for artists and seniors.
“ We hate seeing it deteriorate … it is a beautiful old building with lots of character and lots of rich history there,” May said during her presentation, describing a vision that would include museum-focused uses, artist studios, quilt-making rooms, and apartments above ground-floor studio space.
May said developers from several cities had toured the building over the last five to seven years but found the project large and costly; a local contractor, Trent Wright, subsequently toured the property and told Main Street his team could envision a reuse. May said the auditorium would likely have to be removed, but the bricks might be reused in an outdoor terrace.
Board members did not approve a donation at the meeting. Instead, the board instructed the superintendent, board attorney and appropriate staff to schedule a workshop to examine legal and financial constraints, whether a donation could address a district need, and how to protect the district should the property be transferred. A board member said any donation request should be submitted to the district in writing before the workshop.
Board members also asked that Quincy Main Street invite nearby residents and City of Quincy officials to participate in the workshop because of the property’s proximity to the city government complex and adjacent neighborhoods. Board members indicated the workshop should be scheduled soon so community input can be heard before any final decision.
No binding transfer, sale or donation was approved at the meeting; the action recorded was direction to hold a public workshop and to receive a written proposal from Quincy Main Street.
