In Gary, school officials say it was a historic day for the district Thursday as a demolition completion ceremony was held for Lew Wallace High School. The school built in 1926 on West 45th Avenue in the city’s Glen Park neighborhood closed in 2014. Gary Community Schools Manager Dr. Paige McNulty said numerous alumni were present for yesterday’s ceremony, including a graduate who came in from Florida and a member of the class of 1944. The ceremony was livestreamed on the district’s Facebook page.
A time capsule found as the grounds were being cleared was opened at yesterday’s event, and among the items inside were newspapers from March 1931 and assorted school documents. There are plans to make the contents available to view online. The school built in 1926 on West 45th Avenue in Glen Park closed in 2014. Alumni were able to pick up bricks from the school. The parking lot will also be gone and the site will be converted into green space.
“This is an exciting time in the Gary schools,” said Dr. McNulty in a news release earlier announcing the event. “While we continue to make improvements to our buildings that are open, we also recognize the importance of addressing the issue of abandoned structures with demolition or through selling these properties to other entities for development. We started out with more than 20 properties for sale on the books, and now we are down to just a handful. We want to do our part to help beautify neighborhoods across the city where school buildings are concerned.” Here is a link to see yesterday’s livestreamed ceremony.
