Some folks in Marion, Va., are proposing to build a parking deck rather than raze an historic school

MARION, Va. – People are joining forces in this Smyth County town to save a historic school building – by putting in a parking deck.

"That might be the twist on this story," said Bill Huber, a local architect proposing the parking structure as an alternative to tearing down the schoolhouse to build a parking lot. "... Building a parking garage actually enhances the historical character of the area."

Under mandate from the state Supreme Court to add parking as part of a required courthouse renovation project, the Smyth County Board of Supervisors saw the site of the nearby old schoolhouse as a solution.

The 30,000-square-foot school building opened its doors in 1908 and served as Smyth County’s first high school. It later served as a grammar school and a library, and it currently houses the Smyth County Museum.

The building is in severe disrepair, and tearing it down seemed like a good solution, but there’s been an outcry from many in Marion who don’t want to lose a piece of downtown history.

"Since the old schoolhouse is a block away from the courthouse ... that may have to be used for parking," said Harold Slemp, vice chairman of the board. "But we’re trying to find some other solutions to that situation that have not been determined at this point."

Slemp said he’d like to see the schoolhouse given or sold to someone who will restore it.

The parking issue – along with the courthouse renovation project – are on the agenda for the board’s regular meeting at noon today.

County Engineer Scott Simpson said the board needs to create 234 parking spots, and members are "going to attempt to" make a decision at that meeting between tearing down the school and building a parking deck.

"So in order to create that, we can do it in a variety of ways," Simpson said, "and a variety of ways is either build a very expensive parking deck to accommodate, or a cheaper alternative is to demolish the school building and pave the lot and acquire some other properties coupled with some county property and pave those lots."

He said the board has been exploring options for several years.

The town, meanwhile, has passed a resolution supporting the building’s preservation, and so has the Marion Downtown Revitalization Association.

"Our interest is we want Marion to become a tourist destination ... and we would like to continue that on the other streets just off Main Street," said Mayor David Helms.

"That [schoolhouse] is going to be a major part of the tourist destination for us, and that’s the kind of basket we’re putting our eggs in right now, is tourism."

Ken Heath, executive director of Marion Downtown, echoed Helms’s words. He also said a parking deck would provide much-needed downtown parking that, because of the lay of the land, would not be an overly conspicuous addition to the landscape.

Huber, who said he was "shocked ... into action" when he heard of plans to demolish the schoolhouse, estimates the cost of a three-story parking deck with 186 spaces at $2.7 million – and the cost of tearing down the schoolhouse and another nearby building and creating parking there at $1.6 million.

The parking deck figure includes the estimated $155,000 cost of acquiring and demolishing a law office on the proposed site.

The figure for paved parking includes an estimated cost of about $600,000 for demolition of the schoolhouse, and he said that project would generate a net gain of up to 120 parking spaces.

He said in addition to preserving the schoolhouse, a parking deck would eliminate the potential storm drainage problems created by a large parking lot – and allow the massive trees in the area to remain standing.

More than one group is already interested in using the schoolhouse if it can be saved.

Joe Ellis, the same Marion entrepreneur who renovated the Lincoln Theatre and the General Francis Marion Hotel downtown, hopes to return it to the way it looked when it was built – and use it for an Appalachian School of Music and Art.

"What I want to do is, before that thing falls down, to put it back in good use," Ellis said. "People used to tell me the theater should be bulldozed down and people used to tell me my hotel should be bulldozed down ... but now they’re so proud of them."

Ellis said he wants to model the school after the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, N.C., where for a couple hundred dollars people can take classes in traditional folkways – from quilting to clogging to making apple butter.

"You can’t have historic tourism without historic buildings," Ellis said. "So you may be in the short term saving some money [by tearing down the schoolhouse], but you’re giving up future revenues. It’s penny wise and pound foolish."

The Smyth County Historical and Museum Society also wants to use the building and is hoping to partner with Ellis and others in the community.

"This is a very large building with four very viable, usable floors," said Brenda Gwyn, secretary and past president of the society.

She said the top floor could house artists in residence; the third floor could house the school of music; the second floor could continue to house offices and the museum.

"This was the first county high school, so this is an incredible piece of heritage," Gwyn said. "Thousands upon thousands of children have tramped these halls."

Ellis said his business plan for the school would require almost the entire building – but that he’s offered to lease a room so the museum artifacts can continue to be displayed.

Another man in favor of the parking deck is Duane Cregger, executive director of the Lincoln Theatre.

"As far as being a historic site, having other historic buildings in the area ... is a really important part of the downtown vision the theatre is part of," Cregger said.

He said a parking deck behind the theater would provide much-needed parking for it and other downtown events.

"I don’t think anyone in downtown wants that building torn down ... to put a huge parking lot in the middle of this residential neighborhood that links to historic buildings downtown, I don’t think anyone would be in favor of that at all," Cregger said.

"We’re all just hoping that this last push by different groups will really sway the decision because it’s going to have really long-reaching effects on downtown, whichever way it goes."

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