“The short answer is ‘no.’”
Public told they can’t change Gilbert Stuart demolition plan
As reported earlier in The Providence Eye, a community meeting on July 21 unearthed a host of unanswered resident questions about the fate of the abandoned Gilbert Stuart Middle School — the massive, 90-year old school building on Princeton Avenue attended by generations of South Side children.
On Tuesday August 12, about 70 residents turned out to get the official account of what will happen at the school and whether they could influence the decision. They didn’t like what they heard.
Councilman Pichardo, Ward 9, organized the meeting at the Knight Memorial Library. He opened by noting that he, like many of his South Side neighbors and fellow community leaders, had attended Gilbert Stuart. He expressed “shock and disappointment” when informed of the plan to demolish the building this month. He faulted the Providence Public School Department (PPSD) and the RI Department of Education (RIDE) for a public engagement process that “fell short.” He said that he had intervened with the Mayor to pause the demolition to provide an opportunity for the public to discuss the matter.
However, presentations and remarks from Zack Scott, Deputy Superintendent of Operations at PPSD and Joe DeSantis of Downes Construction, the overall project manager for Providence’s $1 billion school renovation plan, made it clear that the City Council, as well as the School Board and the Mayor, were all well aware of —and had agreed to — the demolition and replacement plan for Gilbert Stuart by 2023, if not earlier.
Scott laid out the Rebuild Providence Schools Plan, which aims for “transformational change” in all Providence schools and classrooms. A key element is the consolidation of many separate elementary and middle schools into combined pre-kindergarten through eighth grade (preK-8) buildings. (The link to the Lima plan at PPSD’s website was not working as of last night.)
Combining schools also conforms with the RIDE’s “newer and fewer” policy, which provides added financial incentives for reducing the total number of buildings operated by the district. The new “Alfred Lima PreK-8 School” on Princeton Ave will replace both the middle school and Lima Elementary School on nearby Daboll Street.
Project manager DeSantis told the audience that three separate architects had concluded that the existing building could not feasibly be adapted to the educational needs set by PPSD and RIDE, including specific needs spaces for pre-K and dual language classrooms as well as disability access and the need to physically separate the age groups within a preK-8 school. Robert Stack of Torrado Architects, the current architect for the project, stepped up briefly to say that his firm “really tried” to find a way to save the building.
Community members weren’t buying it, starting with the premise that the preK-8 model was baked into the plan without community discussion or buy-in. Scott stood by the benefits of preK-8 but didn’t address how the model had been discussed or agreed to.
The panel was peppered with questions and comments about the importance of Gilbert Stuart as a monument in the Elmwood community. Several questioned the sincerity of the City’s effort to reuse the historic building.
“State law is not being followed,” declared Marisa Brown, Executive Director of the Providence Preservation Society. “Will you release studies that show that re-use was not possible?” Courtney Hawkins, the city’s Chief Operating Officer, said they would be.
“I can get any number of architects to tell me what I want to hear,” noted Brent Runyon, a Princeton Street resident and former head of the Providence Preservation Society. “But when educational needs change, will this new building need to be torn down in 30 or 40 years?”
Mark Van Noppen, principal at Armory Revival Company, noted that his firm has done hundreds of renovation projects in Providence. “Maine has pine trees. Providence has its buildings. These are our resources.”
The comments got salty when discussion turned to the public’s knowledge of and involvement in the school construction and demolition plans.
In response to residents who said they were not informed about the school plan, Joe DeSantis said, “Frankly, I struggle with people not knowing,” He noted that the Gilbert Stuart plan, had been through three stages of review and approval from RIDE, the Providence City Council, and the Providence School Building Committee since 2023. He also pointed to a few meetings for teachers and parents at Lima Elementary School as evidence of public engagement. “You all voted for a bond for this project,” referring to the $400 million Providence bond measure approved last November.
“Was Gilbert Stuart on that bond?” a resident shot back. (Note: the bond question did not include any specific projects.)
The idea that officials have been meeting and planning for this change over years and yet knowledge of those plans has not percolated out to the neighbors and parents affected was particularly galling to participants.
Doug Victor, a resident and community activist, noted that the presenters referred to RIDE, PPSD and the City as three partners in the project. “The community should be a fourth partner.” Despite living nearby and being well informed generally, Victor said he did not know about the plan.
“We’ve been bamboozled a long time,” said John Prince. “I live in the neighborhood, and I’ve never heard about this. I went to Gilbert Stuart. So did my brother, my sister. There’s nothing wrong with that building.”
“No one gives a shit about us!” said a man in the back. “No one talks to people like us.”
“You are letting us down!” called out another.
Shortly before the meeting wound down, Joe DeSantis responded to a question by saying that the pre-demolition hazard abatement work at the school, which is now in progress would take another 6 weeks, pushing the anticipated demo start date to late September.
“Is there anything we can say tonight that could change the timeline?” asked David Karoff.
“The short answer is ‘no,’” replied DeSantis.
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