To save a schoolhouse

It may have been deemed unsafe as a voting location, but that doesn't mean the people of Beulah are ready to say goodbye to the old schoolhouse that serves as a community building. Several interested residents spoke with the county commissioners on Wednesday to start the process of deciding what to do with it.

The commission became involved in the building's circumstances last month, when County Clerk Linda Fritz announced her decision to move the Beulah polling station elsewhere due to safety concerns. Acknowledging there are many local residents who do not want to see the building demolished, Commissioner Fred Devish asked, "What does the community feel?"

One of the gathered community members, Tyler Williamson, expressed concern over the potential cost of fixing the damage and preventing future deterioration. Even filling the damaged basement with concrete would require moving it from its foundations, he said, and would take a lot of material.

"I'm all for saving the school, I think it's cool as hell, but it's what you can do with it," he said, expressing that decisions on whether to restore or replace the schoolhouse should focus on "bang for your buck".

Community member Corey Crowder asked if the county has a budget for this project.

"Until we have a budget, I don't see how we can do any of the other decision-making," he said.

Commissioner Kelly Dennis stated that this hasn't yet been discussed. "We were more interested in whether it's safe for people to go into," explained Commissioner Jeanne Whalen.

Whalen said it's unlikely the county will provide any money, but the commission can still "smooth the way" with such things as handling insurance and permitting and lending the aid of Road & Bridge. This, said Dennis, matches previous protocol for similar buildings in Colony, Aladdin and Inyan Kara.

It's up to the community to get together and see who can contribute what, said Whalen. Dennis agreed, explaining that the commission has no desire to dictate what ought to be done.

"Your community runs your community," he said.

Other Concerns

Crowder also commented that there will be a need to make sure there is a flow of information to the community; for example, not many people knew about an informal meeting held at the building on Sunday after Whalen visited the fire hall next door.

He also questioned whether it would be a good idea to create a nonprofit entity to handle the project. County Attorney Joe Baron stressed that this would be more likely to hinder the process and offered to send information about the mechanism of becoming a volunteer of the county instead, which would allow the county to offer such things as insurance.

Crowder also suggested that it would be a good idea to set a timeline so that the project doesn't drag on forever. Baron suggested a proposal be created by April for the commissioners to review in May.

It might be best to pump the brakes, said Crowder, until the community can come together and reach consensus. He felt a group leader will be needed, to make decisions and prevent factions from forming.

During the conversation, the commission heard a proposal via telephone from a woman who would like to buy the property and place a small dwelling on it. Commissioner Kelly Dennis, not pleased to see the conversation derailed, called a halt to her description of her plans to state that, "The property has never been list for sale. The discussion is over."

Needed Repairs

The first available photographs of the building show its use as a school in 1890, taught by Anajean Rayburn. It is a wood structure with a stucco exterior supported by a mid-1900s concrete masonry foundation in need of extensive repairs.

To figure out how much those repairs would cost, Fritz presented attendees with the findings of three structural engineers who had agreed to take a look at the building pro bono and provide a preliminary evaluation.

Fritz's father, from photographs, ascertained that the deterioration of the foundation has been caused by excessive water saturation of the adjacent soil. Correcting the problem, he said, could require several steps, including gutters and downspouts, foundation drainage and basement wall waterproofing, while to reinforce the bowed walls, he suggested adding concrete masonry pilasters.

Ed Scott, retired structural engineer, also noted water leaks and bowing foundation walls. He made 17 recommendations to restore the building for public use, including crack sealing, regarding of the ground adjacent to the building, sewer upgrades and reinforcement of the masonry block foundation walls.

Jeff Holberg, Moorcroft Building Inspector, provided cost estimates to repair the foundation at a total of $51,200.

One of the more pertinent reasons for Fritz's decision to move Beulah's voting location was the water leaks affecting the building's electrical system. While Commissioner Fred Devish noted that the engineer findings suggest the breaker box "just needs to not have water running over it" and the electric system does not need to be replaced, the commission agreed with Chairman Kelly Dennis's statement that an electrician should perform a proper check for the sake of safety.

Moving Forward

The six community members in the room agreed to take responsibility for getting the ball rolling by arranging a meeting for all interested parties. The hope, said Crowder, is to bring everyone together to appoint a leader and start coming up with a plan to either renovate or replace the building, which can then be presented to the commissioners.