Supporters of the West Broad School Campus have gotten a boost from the state.
At a press conference Tuesday, Historic Athens announced that the state has ruled the campus historic, significant and eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
Tommy Valentine is Executive Director of Historic Athens. “And we have to draw a line in the sand here,” Valentine said. “This history that the West Broad campus represents is too important to do a rush demolition, rush construction or rush design process. It’s critical that we save this campus. It’s critical that Athens maintains this story so that we have a true sense of our history, where we’ve been and where we’re going.”
All three buildings, the courtyard, and breezeways are included in that declaration. “The state of Geor
gia has now signified that the entire campus is historic, that it is a valuable historic campus as is. It’s important that we move forward and to do so in a way that maintains the historic integrity of this critical and statewide recognized site of national and historic significance.”
A letter from the State of Georgia’s Department of Community Affairs declares the 130-year-old West Broad Campus is historic, significant, and eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under multiple formal criteria: Education, Black Ethnic Heritage, and Architecture.