A local fraternity is seeking to purchase an abandoned elementary school.
Beta Tau Lambda, the Fort Worth chapter of the fraternity Alpha Phi Alpha, is seeking to purchase the abandoned Vickery Elementary property in Fort Worth. The organization aims to convert the structure into a new resource center.
The Vickery Elementary building, located at 1905 E. Vickery Blvd., is a two-story structure originally constructed in 1910 for the Glenwood neighborhood, according to Fort Worth Architecture.
A one-story wing on the east side of the building was designed by Wyatt C. Hedrick and was completed in 1937. This building was designed by Waller, Shaw, & Field, the same firm responsible for the Texas Christian University master plan.
The building was closed in the 1980s and at some point since its abandonment, it was used as a nightclub.
Recently, the building was the site of a fire. The Fort Worth Fire Department reported that it had responded to a structure fire at the location overnight on August 8. The department said that the building is “familiar” to crews in the area as the department had responded to six fires there this year alone.
“The building, an abandoned school, is well known to the [Fort Worth Fire Department] crews in the stations surrounding it. That is why the firefighters immediately performed a search of the run-down building for anyone that may be trapped,” said the department in a Facebook post.
Beta Tau Lambda seeks to purchase the building from the city and transform it into a boon for the local community. The organization wants to convert the building into a new resource center for the Glenwood Triangle and Historic Southside neighborhoods, according to WFAA.
“This neighborhood has been overlooked for a long period of time,” Glen Harmon, leader of the frat’s Fort Worth chapter, told WFAA. “We feel the building still has value. Just like the people in the community, we want to accentuate that value and bring back the light.”
City leaders are leaning towards selling the building, reported WFAA. Assuming the building is sold, the organization said it will then gather feedback on the needs of the local community and establish a way to fulfill them.
Harmon said the facility could be turned into a community kitchen or clinic.
Craig Trojacek, Fort Worth Fire Department spokesperson, told WFAA that the building is a beautiful structure that the department would like to see tended to. However, he noted that the multiple fires that have occurred there present an obvious safety concern.
“Every time it catches fire, the structural integrity goes down considerably,” said Trojacek, according to WFAA. “At some point, somebody is going to get injured or worse.”