The historic former high school building at 201 E. 12th St. is in the city’s sights for a new city hall and downtown police department. On Saturday, the city opened its doors and invited the public to explore.
About 25 people visited the building and wandered the hallways and rooms on the first floor, as floorboards creaked underneath their feet.
One resident said she stopped by to probe the city about what’s to become of the tall trees scattered about the property. Another visitor was a graduate of the former high school and stopped by to bask in the nostalgia of his glory days.
City Manager José Madrigal and Durango Police Department Administrative Analyst McKenzie Perdue greeted residents and were ready to answer questions.
Madrigal said many details about the proposed rehabilitation of the former high school still need to be worked out. But since the city acquired the building from Durango Fire Protection District last year, people should have the chance to see the property for themselves – it is a public building after all, he said.
The former high school has several notable quirks. An old swimming pool is buried in the basement, sealed off by a heavy concrete slab. A walk-in safe is built into the walls on the first floor, but nobody knows where the key to it is, Madrigal said.
He said the building’s facade is protected by a historic status, and maintaining its character is a condition of the city’s plans to renovate the building for new use. A large auditorium, complete with second floor gallery seating, is also a strong candidate for a future City Council chambers.
Madrigal said it’s uncertain what will become of the old gallery, but it’d be nice to preserve it and make it available for public use during city meetings.
He said the city wants to preserve old Durango High School logos, decorated door frames and other aesthetic features throughout the building that inform visitors about its history. The pool, however, won’t be preserved and will be removed.
He said as of now, the city wants to get the public engaged and collect feedback. The city has two other open houses planned for 9 to 11 a.m. Oct. 12 and Nov. 16.
“It’s going to be a lot of work,” Perdue said. “ … There’s some aspects of it that are incredible; the old gym, being able to see that old track and where they used to run. What will happen with it? I don’t know. It might become an office. It might become a nice sitting area.”
She said the city welcomes any comments and suggestions for how to best use the new building as a city hall and the adjacent former Big Picture High School building as a new police station.
DPD’s current downtown police station on East Second Avenue just isn’t cutting it anymore, she said. The department needs to hire more officers, but it doesn’t have the space for it at the current building.
“We are erecting offices in real time when we hire somebody new,” she said. “ … We don’t have the space. We’re running out of space. City Hall is the same.”
But the public has questions about how the city plans to use tax revenue to fund renovations for the former high school and Big Picture buildings. The city eyes voter approval for a 30-year extension of its 2005 sales tax, which is shaping up to be a key issue in the city’s April election.
Perdue said people who are curious or have questions should attend an open house to get a feel for the city’s plans.
Resident Jules Harris, who attended Saturday’s open house, said she wants to know what the city is doing about the large trees on the East 12th Street property. She’s interested in preserving them.
She said trees on historic sites have protected statuses, so it’s important to consider whether they need to be removed, if they can be replanted, and if they can be replaced.
She said city projects don’t always account for factors like habitat loss, drainage loss and shade loss associated with tree removal. Residents don’t necessarily consider those things either – until the trees are already removed.
She said those factors impact the total true cost of construction projects, but are rarely reflected in project bids.
“If we just included (tree replacement and removal costs) up front, along with all the other costs of our project, there’s nothing to go hunting for and there’s no gossip in town and there’s no rumor mill,” she said.
cburney@durangoherald.com
An earlier version of this story misstated the future date of a second open house at 201 E. 12th St. The correct date is Oct. 12. Incorrect information was given to The Durango Herald.
