What’s the Deal With…the old Webb School building

So, for those of you who were unhappy with my post the other week about Old Engine House 10 being turned into condos (More than one person complained, “Not more condos!” ), I’m happy to say I have good news this week on another abandoned historic building – the Webb Public School building on the grounds on Myrtilla Miner Elementary School at 15th St NE. Good news, at least, in the sense that the building is not currently slated to become condos. The bad news is that it’s not currently slated to become anything else either. (After all, it’s not like the building’s been vacant for 50+ years or anything…)

The Webb building opened its doors in 1901 with much fanfare from the DC Board of Commissioners as to how great an education could be provided with the new facility (here’s the article from the old Washington Times). That sentiment apparently had run its course by the late 1940s as the school–described as rundown and, more bombastically by the National Negro Council, as a “hand-me-down carbon-monoxide school”–was used by DCPS to transfer black students from the overcrowded Browne Junior High School instead of placing them in nearby underutilized white schools. Since that ended, the building has remained in the DCPS inventory but basically vacant except as a storage facility for school supplies.

Based on discussions with the Deputy Mayor for Education’s office, it seems plans for the school building are vague. What we do know is that the building soon will be emptied of storage and cleaned and that future use will be guided by the Education and Youth Development Plan, which will determine facility needs between charter schools, DCPS, Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, and the Department of Real Estate Services. Now, filling out needs assessment community surveys aren’t exactly great entertainment (though now that Lost and 24 are done my Tivo is getting a bit empty), but at least there’s an easy online way to have some input (here’s the link to DME’s online survey). In addition, DME plans to hold community meetings on the DYP (time/place TBD). For now though, I haven’t seen any proposals. Any one have ideas?