Historic school restored to pre-hurricane glory

The historic halls of Brock Elementary School are once again echoing with the pitter-patter of little feet.

An educational landmark located in Olde Towne Slidell, the facility has been closed since Hurricane Katrina caused severe damage to the 78-year-old building in 2005. After being temporarily housed at several area schools, most recently St. Tammany Junior High School, 280 kindergarten through fifth-grade students returned to classes at Brock on Dec. 9.

Under FEMA guidelines the school was eligible for a replacement facility, but due to the school’s significance in the community, school officials elected to renovate the two-story facility. The $9 million project was one of the most extensive of the hurricane-damaged schools in the area, preceded by only the Brooks Curriculum Center and Salmen High School, both of which are being rebuilt from the ground up.

“Typically, the biggest challenges in any renovation project are the little unforeseen developments,” said Construction Supervisor Cameron Tipton. “Here we also had to deal with the historic nature of the property while dealing with FEMA as well.”

Because of the historic nature of the school, the building kept its existing elevation, which is below flood stage. Other modifications were required, such as using marine plywood in all of the woodwork. Most of the bricks used in the facility are original to the building, and Tipton said several years’ worth of paint had to be removed to restore them to their original hue. Matching replacement bricks were found for those that could not be cleaned or repaired.

Other changes include a wheelchair lift and other modifications to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as a new Sport Court surface in the school gymnasium that replaces the original hardwood floors. One classroom building, an addition built sometime in the late 1940s, sustained such severe damage that it was demolished, and a new building, constructed to the same footprint, replaced it.

Principal Rose Smith said the teachers were thrilled when they walked through the new facility for the first time.

“They were like kids, giggling over everything and how beautiful it looked,” said Smith. “Because it’s so close to Christmas, coming back here is that much more meaningful.”

Smith said the staff had assumed when they packed up and left the Friday before Hurricane Katrina that they would be back the following Monday. The storm, however, dumped 4-6 feet of water into the building with unforeseen force, pushing chairs locked inside an office at the front of the school to the other end of the building.

The Slidell Pathways School, currently housed at Alton Elementary, will move into the STJHS trailers vacated by Brock, until construction is complete on the nearby Brooks Center. Smith said an open house and building dedication at Brock are planned for mid-January.

“This is a real neighborhood school, and everyone went here,” she said. “To me, it’s home.”