CLEVELAND — For years, the former Henry Wadsworth Longfellow School sat vacant. Now, it has a new lease on life, transformed into an affordable senior housing complex.
"To think about this building at one time was being considered for demolition was criminal, quite frankly criminal," said Cleveland City Councilman Mike Polensek, Ward 8.
Inside the entryway of the new Longfellow Senior Community are the former students' desks and photos of memories made inside classrooms lining the walls.
"I was determined that it was not going to be another vacant lot as so often we see with schools being closed and abandoned and then torn down, said Polensek.
Built in 1924, Longfellow School boasted hand-carved stone designs, hardwood floors, glass blocks and brick designs.
"They don't make them like this anymore, they really don't," said Kathleen Crowther, president of the Cleveland Restoration Society.
Preserving these characteristics, like a former gymnasium turned into a modern fitness center, was a passion project for Polensek.
In 2016, Polensek had the school named a Cleveland landmark. At the time, the Cleveland Restoration Society joined Polensek to save the school.
"I can think of all the meetings we had over a 10-year period of trying to figure out what to do with the site, but then the stars aligned and now we have this magnificent building," said Polensek.
A new community center, once an old school theater. One and two-bedroom apartments, former classrooms. Polensek said, "we need affordable housing in the city, not just for seniors but for families in general and we have to do everything we can to save structures that have good bones."
The way the school was re-imagined serves a much bigger purpose. Not only is it an affordable place to live, but it also re-invents part of the neighborhood. Crowther said, "It is now being used as the model for other vacant schools in Cleveland neighborhoods."
