Vare-Washington School
Vare-Washington School (listed as: George Washington School)
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George Washington School, April 2010
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Location | Fifth and Federal Sts., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
Area | 2 acres (0.81 ha) |
Built | 1935-1937 |
Architect | Catharine, Irwin T. |
Architectural style | Moderne, Art Deco |
MPS | Philadelphia Public Schools TR |
NRHP Reference # | 86003343[1] |
Added to NRHP | December 4, 1986 |
Abigail Vare School (former building)
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Abigail Vare School, May 2010
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Location | Morris St. and Moyamensing Ave., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
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Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
Built | 1903-1904 |
Built by | Garley, Samuel,Jr. |
Architect | Gaw, James |
Architectural style | Classical Revival |
MPS | Philadelphia Public Schools TR |
NRHP Reference # | 86003339[1] |
Added to NRHP | December 4, 1986 |
Vare-Washington School, formerly Abigail Vare School, is a K-8 school in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia. It occupies the former George Washington School building in the Dickinson Narrows neighborhood,[citation needed] in proximity to Southwark.[2]
The historic school building, designed by Irwin T. Catharine and built in 1935-1937. It is a three-story, brick and limestone building in the Art Deco / Moderne-style. It features ribbon windows, brick piers, and a projecting entrance with skyscraper-like details and rounded corners with decorative figures.[3] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.[1]
Residents of the current Vare-Washington zone,[4] and residents of the former Abigail Vare School zone, are also zoned to Furness High School.[5]
The school was named after Abigail Vare, the mother of the three Vare Brothers (including William Scott Vare), who became politicians and contractors;[6] as well as George Washington.
History
Abigail Vare School previously occupied a 54,000-square-foot (5,000 m2) historic school building located in the Pennsport neighborhood, located across from Dickinson Square Park.[7] It was built in 1903-1904, and is a three-story, square stone building in the Classical Revival-style. It features a central projecting pediment with Ionic order columns and decorative Palladian window, an oversized molded cornice, and a hipped and gable roof with decorative brackets.[8] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.[1]
In December 2012 Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. presented a proposal that would close Washington and move Abigail Vare School into Washington's building. At the time Washington's building was in a better condition compared to Vare's, while the Vare school had an academic performance superior to that of Washington's.[9] In March 2013, the school district voted to close Washington.[2] Abigail Vare School moved from its previous building to the former Washington building,[10] and it is now known as Vare-Washington School.
After Washington-Vare moved to the former Washington school, the former Vare school remained vacant. The school district and the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation listed the Vare building for $2.5 million. Concordia Group, a company headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, acquired the Vare building, along with Germantown High School and three other schools, for $6.8 million.[7] The SRC voted on this sale in September 2014.[11]
In 2015 Concordia Group announced that it wished to construct six townhouses next to the former Vare building and also convert Vare itself into 45 apartment units.[7] The developer engaged in a community meeting with area residents, and it reduced the number of units to 41, in addition to reducing the amount of parking.[12]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Medina, Regina. "Philly union challenges teacher-dump decision." Philadelphia Inquirer. May 24, 2013. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Note: This includes Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "School Finder." School District of Philadelphia. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
- ↑ "Horace Furness High School Geographic Boundaries" (Archive). School District of Philadelphia. Retrieved on October 4, 2011.
- ↑ Avery, Ron. "Nepotism's The Name Vips Had Dibs On Area Places." Philadelphia Inquirer. July 12, 1995. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Jennings, James. "Mt. Sinai Developer Plans Apartments, Townhomes at Shuttered Pennsport School." Philadelphia. June 10, 2015. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Note: This includes Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Graham, Kristen A. "Philadelphia superintendent identifies schools he intends to close." Philadelphia Inquirer. December 15, 2012. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
- ↑ Graham, Kristen. "SRC votes to spare four schools." Philadelphia Inquirer. Thursday October 17, 2013. Retrieved on November 30, 2015. "CLOSING:[...]George Washington Elementary School, 1198 S. 5th Street Abigail Vare Elementary School, 1621 E. Moyamensing Avenue (building only, moves into George Washington Elementary)"
- ↑ "SRC will vote on sale of 11 closed schools." The Notebook. September 18, 2014. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
- ↑ Brey, Jared. "Maryland developers see opportunity in Philly's institutional shells." PlanPhilly at Philadelphia Inquirer. Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
External links
- Articles with unsourced statements from November 2015
- South Philadelphia
- School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Art Deco architecture in Pennsylvania
- Moderne architecture in Pennsylvania
- School buildings completed in 1937
- Neoclassical architecture in Pennsylvania
- School buildings completed in 1904
- School District of Philadelphia