While Banks School District leaders are moving forward with plans to demolish the city’s historic high school building, some community members aren’t letting it fall without a fight.

In a final push to preserve the 105-year-old structure on Main Street, the Banks Historical Society has launched a campaign to save what it calls a civic cornerstone in the making.

The debate isn’t new; the Banks school board approved its 20-year master plan in January, outlining a vision for new facilities, campus renovations and long-term upgrades — which included razing the century-old high school.

And though advocates are hopeful to prevent the building from falling, the district “has concluded that demolition is the most practical and financially responsible path forward.”

Pushing back against plans

The Georgian-style brick building, constructed in 1920 as Washington County’s first union high school that united seven rural districts, remains a visual anchor in the small rural town. But years of wear have taken their toll: The building is plagued with water damage, mold, seismic risks and structural issues so severe that staff have stepped through sections of the second floor.

As district leaders weighed a new 43,000-square-foot high school, community members proposed an alternative in restoring the historic building for continued classroom use and preserving a central piece of Banks’ identity.

“It started as a grassroots community effort spearheaded by Nina Shurts, who became involved after she realized that the school bond had not said anything about demolishing the old school,” Jennifer Newton, communications director for the Banks Historical Society, said. “It actually had language talking about things like seismic upgrades … So we all kind of assumed that meant that the historic school was going to be a part of the new campus. Subsequent to that, we found out that the plans were not to have that be the case.”

Two final design concepts were considered — one that kept the building and one that didn’t. In the end, the board voted to move forward with demolition.

Now, the Banks Historical Society, after months of work behind the scenes, is appealing for help — from the public and private sectors alike — in one last effort to save the building.

“We’ve been going through all of the proper channels for months trying to do everything by the book — meeting with the right people, attending the meetings,” Newton said. “It’s become more and more challenging; we’re at the point now where we’re looking for a private investor or a public-private partnership as our last-ditch attempt to save this school from demolition.”

Breathing new life into the historic space

For the historical society, saving the building opens an opportunity to both save the past and move forward.

With major housing developments underway and the city expecting its population to balloon over the next decade, the society envisions a new purpose for the old building: It could house school or city offices, co-working and small business suites, nonprofit meeting rooms, or serve as a venue for events and programs — helping to meet long-standing needs for flexible public space, without the cost or delay of new construction.

And there may be a path to funding from local leaders. The society is urging the city to include the property as it refinances and updates its Urban Renewal Area, which could unlock up to $3 million in urban renewal funds — without raising taxes — to support renovation.

Or, the society hopes that Washington County could swoop in as it prepares to lose its historical society museum in 2028.

“Purchasing and restoring the building through the county would also spread the renovation costs across all Washington County residents,” the society noted.

Questions of transparency and tradeoffs

Although community advocates maintain that demolition was not the original plan, Banks Superintendent Brian Sica says it was always a clear possibility.

Preserving the building proved difficult within the constraints of the $49 million bond, according to district leaders. Though the school board explored a cost-neutral proposal to save the old high school, Sica has previously stated that option came with tradeoffs including classroom size and an “education annex” that would require students walking between buildings.

Sica added that the district would have to postpone the construction of a new auxiliary gym to fit its budget if it kept the old building — a promise it made for the approved bond. Under current district plans, its “barn” gymnasium will be replaced with a brand new auxiliary gym.

“The board did not overlook the ‘cost-neutral proposal,’” Sica said. “The option was made cost neutral by reducing the scope of the project. The board considered all options and determined that the most financially prudent decision was to adopt the current 20-year master plan.”

Historical society members say the district had once expressed openness to outside funding if someone could cover design costs and planning work already completed — but no formal offer has been made.

“Hypotheticals are difficult to respond to,” Sica said.

According to the district, abatement will begin during the summer break. Demolition is tentatively set for late fall or winter 2025, while the new auxiliary gym is scheduled to open in fall 2026 and the new high school in fall 2027.

“The important thing is that we move as quickly as possible,” Newton said. “Every day that goes by, the plans get more and more solid.”