Christopher Anderson/The Gazette
County officials are planning to demolish the Old Marlboro Elementary School in Upper Marlboro.
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Residents oppose possible demolition of historic Upper Marlboro school
Supporters say proposed domestic violence center at site would better protect county residents
Prince George’s County judges are advocating for a new center to better intervene in and prevent domestic violence, but some Upper Marlboro officials, residents and historians say the center would come at the expense of a valuable historic resource.
Prince George’s County Circuit Court judges are advocating for a one-stop-shop facility for victims of domestic violence to more efficiently receive services. But the latest proposals, which are still in the early stages, have the facility tentatively slated to be built at the site of the vacant Old Marlboro Elementary School, which is recognized in a county historic sites registry and is home to multiple historic landmarks, drawing the ire of some residents and historians who don’t want the building demolished.
Sheila R. Tillerson Adams, administrative judge for Prince George’s County and the Seventh Judicial Circuit, and Cathy H. Serrette, a Seventh Judicial Circuit and Family Division Coordinating Judge, spoke before the Prince George’s County Council on Nov. 9 of the need for a one-stop shop, the Family Justice Center, to handle domestic violence issues in one place.
Residents are lobbying for the county to either preserve the school site altogether and place the new facility elsewhere, or renovate the current school building for the proposed center.
John Brunner, former mayor of University Park and a member of the Prince George’s County Historical Society, said historians and residents across the county were “taken aback” by the news that the Old Marlboro Elementary School could be torn down.
“The Family Justice Center is a great idea, and it needs to be put somewhere,” Brunner said. “It’s a question of whether you want to tear down a part of the county’s history to put up a new building, or whether there are alternative sites, and there probably are, or if you want to find a creative reuse of the current buildings.”
Because the site is on the county’s historic registry, the county’s Historic Preservation Commission must consider a Historic Area Work Permit application from the county before any changes can be made to the exterior of the building, including demolition.
The county’s Office of Central Services director, Monica Johnson, said her agency is in the process of putting the application together, but she did not have a timeline on when it would be submitted to the HPC.
Johnson said Monday her agency’s plan is still to demolish the building.
“[The idea of adaptive reuse] has not come up to date in our discussions,” Johnson said. “I can’t say one way or the other at this point. We need to go through putting our application together, and then maybe get some more input and take it from there.”
In October, when Upper Marlboro Town Commissioners President Stephen Sonnett discovered that the Office of Central Services was looking for vendors to tear the building down, Johnson said her agency didn’t realize the site was on the county’s historic registry.
Serrette told the council that the proposed center would allow domestic violence victims to be able to receive services from different agencies, all at one place.
“The current service delivery model is enormously frustrating and difficult for victims, Serrette said. “They have to go from location to location to location to get what they need and tell their story over and over and over again.”
The Old Marlboro Elementary School building, built in 1896, also was home to Old Marlboro High School/Marlboro Academy, built in 1921, and is the grave site of Dr. William Beanes, a doctor who treated U.S. soldiers during the Revolutionary War and was captured by British troops during the War of 1812.
Sonnett pointed to a 2008 Upper Marlboro revitalization planning document from the Prince George’s County Planning Board that suggested renovation of the current building for a new tenant instead of outright demolition.
“This is one of the last important historic sites left in the town,” he said. “It defines the character of the town.”
George Leonnig, an Upper Marlboro resident and former town commissioner, said he thought any controversy about the building could have been avoided if the county had “done their homework.”
“If we get our points across [at the Historic Preservation Commission], I think it’ll be difficult for this to come to fruition,” Leonnig said. “[Finding another location] would work much better than trying to put a square peg in a round hole, as in this situation.”
County Councilman Mel Franklin (D-Dist. 9) of Upper Marlboro, whose district includes the town, said it was “unfortunate” that county officials did not realize the building was historic until after opening bidding for the demolition, and recommended county officials go through the Historic Preservation Commission to determine how costly it would be to retrofit the current building.
County Council Vice Chairman Eric Olson (D-Dist. 3) of College Park said that while he fully supports the concept of a Family Justice Center, he hopes the county looks into other ways to construct the facility without removing a historic landmark.
“I do want to make sure we preserve as many historic buildings as we can and preserve the historic character of our communities,” Olson said.
ewagner@gazette.net
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