The building that once housed the Gateway School -- and before that, Clarksville Junior High -- appears to have outlived its usefulness, the protestations of a Glenwood architect and Preservation Howard County notwithstanding.

The county government has announced its intention to raze the 70-year-old building at the intersection of Route 108 and Great Star Drive and sell the seven acres it sits on to make way for a mixed-use development (see the story on www.explorehoward.com). The development itself might cause concern. That stretch of highway has seen rapid development over the past several years, and county officials need to make sure the neighborhood can handle the impact on traffic of whatever new construction happens there.

But the opponents base their argument primarily upon the existing building's historic value, which is negligible at best.

To be sure, what's "historic" is a subjective judgment, but we see little to suggest the old school fits the description. County taxpayers figure to gain more than they lose through the demolition.

Built in 1939, the building served for 40 years as Clarksville Junior High School. In 1979, the county converted it into a school for students with behavioral problems. After the Homewood School opened to serve that function, the county used the Clarksville building as a training facility for firefighters. The fire department moved out in 2007, and the building has been vacant ever since.

The preservationists argue that its status as a New Deal public-works project makes it historic. However, the Works Progress Administration and the other agencies created to put people to work during the Great Depression built countless projects, including many bridges and other infrastructure that now need to be demolished or radically renovated.

Nothing of historic import ever happened at the Clarksville site. Its value lies in its utility.

The building itself may well be in excellent condition, as the preservationists say, but its "innards" -- plumbing, wiring, heating, etc. -- would almost certainly need overhaul if it were ever put to another use.

The county no longer has any use for it, and no one has stepped up to make an offer for what's there now.

Selling the property, letting others put it to a use that's compatible with the neighborhood and getting the land on the county tax rolls seems the only practical option.

user comments (1)

user belovedcartoonmouse says...

Since when did anyone care what effect development would have on Route 108 in Clarksville? Also, that building has a gym on the third floor. The third floor! What architect in their right mind would do that? How can anything with a gym on the third floor be historic?

Posted 4:05 PM, 12.07.09 | Permalink