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Community recalls Leslie Junior High as Salem-Keizer SD 24J modernized South Salem High campus
Summary
Speakers at a community session traced Leslie Junior High’s arc from an early 20th-century ‘‘state-of-the-art’’ school through a 1936 WPA expansion to its later demolition to expand South Salem High, noting a narrow bond win, asbestos and HVAC problems, and reuse as Howard Street Charter School.
Several community speakers recounted why Salem-Keizer SD 24J removed Leslie Junior High to expand South Salem High and how the old building’s decades-long history remains visible in the new campus. Presenters pointed to a combination of enrollment and seismic needs, maintenance problems and a closely contested bond process.
A presenter who outlined the building’s early history said Leslie was built in the early 1900s and "was kind of... state of the art" for its time, with specialized classrooms and an original cost he recalled as "$88,000." He said the next major construction phase was a 1936 Works Progress Administration project that added an auditorium and gymnasium and that Governor Charles Martin spoke at the opening while the student body president, who later became Sen. Mark Hatfield, served as master of ceremonies.
Spea…
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