Please... (Part 2)
There's a history here.
You didn’t really think we could talk about school closure and demolition without archival pictures and newspaper clippings, did you?
There’s a lot of photos today, and that means your email provider may limit what is delivered to your inbox. Make sure to click “view entire message” if you’re prompted so you don’t miss anything.
If you missed yesterday’s post, read it first: Please… February 9, 2026
The archival work and data analysis behind this post costs both time and money. The enrollment numbers and opening/closing dates are from the original data set I created as part of my dissertation work. I spent probably hundreds of hours hand transcribing enrollment records from paper books into electronic form and reading old newspapers to locate school addresses. Someday, hopefully soon, it will be freely available to the public.
If you are able, please subscribe to City Reform at a level that fits into your budget to help show support for the work and help me cover my costs. If subscriptions aren’t your thing, you can add a few bucks to my coffee fund. Thanks for reading!
So, why am I making all this fuss now?
Great question.
Technically, I’ve been making a fuss for a long time. This isn’t anything new for me. Making a fuss is kinda what I do. After all, I am the person who wrote an entire political platform for education back in November 2024. Some might even call me a little extra.
But that’s not really the answer.
The vote to close schools in 2021 was the culmination of more than a year’s worth of work. We coasted along through community engagement and added the topic to countless board meeting and work session agendas. The whole time, I felt like we were being upfront and transparent about what we were doing and why, but what I realize now is that you can never do enough.
Then, at the eleventh hour, we were hit from all directions from what felt like everyone in the City demanding that we stop and redo our decision making framework. It was awful. The pressure was immense and I felt helpless, but, honestly, by then it was far too late to retreat. So much time had elapsed throughout the process and the need to close schools was too great. I know the process we used and data points we relied on weren’t good enough, but, at some point, it became inevitable. We’d already made so many small steps in the direction of closure.
I’m doing this now because there’s a chance the board can be spared the stress of a less-then-ideal school closure policy process and the city can avoid the trauma of experiencing major changes to their school system with what feels like no notice. We could finally have the plan we need and deserve.
For the moment, everything is at a standstill. That means we can choose what direction we want to go in. Nothing is decided, nothing is predetermined…yet.
But tonight’s (Tues, Feb 10) board meeting agenda has a lot of topics that deserve more time, attention, and discussion. All of the following should be connected into a bigger, more strategic, long term plan for school infrastructure: tornado repairs (8.28 and 8.30), tornado-damaged school reopening (11.5), grade span changes (11.3), demolitions (11.2), increases to hazmat contracts (8.25), program relocations (11.4 - read more about this in my post from May 2024!), and CVPA redesign (8.29).
They’re seemingly small decisions. A few million here, a few million there. A couple classrooms closed, an under-enrolled program relocated.
But these are all steps toward inevitability. They put us on a path that is very hard to leave. The more small steps we take, the more options we eliminate from our future set of possibilities. So, unless we want every school board member from now until eternity to be faced with closing schools and repurposing old real estate, we need to keep as many options open as long as we possibly can.
There isn’t actually a rush to sell or demolish schools. Many of these buildings (and others) have been vacant, collapsing, and/or for sale for more than a decade (at least). There’s time to develop a thoughtful, forward-looking, comprehensive plan for our public school infrastructure. I know it might seem like offloading them as soon as possible is decisive, that if we can finally get these old buildings off our maintenance budget then everything will be better. But, the real crime of the past wasn’t closing the schools or letting them rot for a decade or more, although those decisions came with considerable negative consequences, it was not having a clear plan for what comes next.
Our schools aren’t just buildings. They hold pieces of our souls. They hold our neighborhoods together. They are important and how we treat them matters. If we rush through the small steps of today and let inevitability lead us, the list below will only grow.
Here’s a glimpse into the backstory of the schools considered for demolition or sale. (Note - Enrollment numbers do not include Pre-K.)
Cote Brilliante School, 2616 Cora
Opened prior to 1950
Closed in 2017
Peak Enrollment (1953) = 1,185
Final Year Enrollment = 138
My trips to Cote Brilliante: “I don’t have any money but I do know how to write.” - October 10, 2025; Come with me - November 3, 2025; Mostly it just looked the same - January 19, 2025
Cupples School, 4908 Cote Brilliante Ave.
Opened prior to 1950
Closed in 2003
Peak Enrollment (1964) = 1,177
Final Year Enrollment = 152
Current Listing Price: $416,000 “A Rare Repositioning Opportunity in North St. Louis City” Other listing.
Euclid School, 1131 N. Euclid
Opened as Euclid School in 1964-1965.
Closed in 2007
Peak Enrollment (1965, 1966) = 705
Peak Enrollment when combined with Euclid Branch locations (1968) = 895
Final Year Enrollment (2007) = 91
Operated as Washington Branch prior to 1965. Peak enrollment for Washington Branch was 789 students in 1958, combined enrollment for Washington and Washington Branch that year was 1,572.
Current Listing Price: $214,452 “A Unique Redevelopment Opportunity in Fountain Park” Other listing.
My trip to Euclid: “I don’t have any money but I do know how to write.” - October 10, 2025
Fanning Middle School, 3417 Grace
Opened prior to 1950
Closed in 2021
Peak Enrollment (1970) = 881
Final Year Enrollment (2021) = 166
Promotional video by real estate broker
Current Listing Price: $1,300,000 “Adaptive Reuse & Community Impact Opportunity” Other listing.
Ford Elementary, 1383 Clara
Opened in 1964-1965 school year.
Closed in 2021
Peak Enrollment (1967) = 1,052
Peak Enrollment when combined with Ford Branch (1967) = 1,370
Final Year Enrollment (2021) = 136
Current listing price: $788,200 “A Legacy Campus Positioned for Its Next Chapter” Other listing.
Promotional video by the real estate broker
Gundlach School, 2931 Arlington
Opened prior to 1950
Closed in 2008
Peak Enrollment (1963) = 1,358
Final Year Enrollment (2008) = 216
Current Listing Price: $347,895 “A legacy campus positioned for its next chapter” Other listing.
Hempstead School, 5872 Minerva
Opened prior to 1950
Closed in 2003
Peak Enrollment (1963) = 1,495
Peak Enrollment when combined with Hempstead Branch (1964) = 1,594
Final Year Enrollment (2003) = 218
Langston School, 5511 Wabada
Opened in 1965
Converted from an elementary school to a middle school in the 1980s.
Closed permanently in 2017
Peak enrollment (1967) = 1,227
Peak enrollment when combined with Langston Branch (1967) = 1,378
Final year enrollment (2017) = 182
Current listing price: $400,000 “A Legacy Campus Positioned for Its Next Chapter” Other listing.
Northwest, 5140 Riverview Blvd.
Opened in 1964
Transitioned from a high school to a middle school in the 1990s.
Transitioned from a middle school to a “choice” high school in the 2000s.
Closed permanently in 2021.
Peak enrollment (1977) = 2,484
Final year enrollment (2021) = 156
Scullin School, 4160 N. Kingshighway
Opened prior to 1950
Closed in 2003
Peak Enrollment (1966) = 979
Final Year Enrollment (2003) = 260
Current listing price: $324,700 “Adaptive Reuse & Redevelopment Opportunity” Other listing
Stowe School, 5750 Lotus
Opened in 1968
Transitioned from an elementary school to a middle school in the late 1970s/early 1980s.
Closed permanently in 2009
Peak Enrollment (1970) = 1,299
Final Year Enrollment (2009) = 253
Current listing price: $450,000 “A Legacy Campus Positioned for Its Next Chapter” Other listing
Turner Middle (2615 Billups) and Turner Branch (42XX W. Kennerly)
Opened in 1955
Transitioned to a middle school in 1960s
Closed permanently in 2006
Peak enrollment, main location and branch combined (1959) = 1,085
Final year enrollment (2006) = 265
Current listing price for Turner Middle: $497,680 “Strategic Value-Add Redevelopment” Other listing
Current listing price for Turner Branch: $155,045 “Prime Repositioning Opportunity” Other listing
Walnut Park Elementary, 5814 Thekla
Opened prior to 1950
Closed permanently in 2003
Peak enrollment (1973) = 919
Peak enrollment when combined with Walnut Park Branch (1975) = 1,129
Final Year Enrollment (2003) = 232
