The School

Public school closings are ongoing issues in many major American cities. The thesis looks at a vacant historic school in the Eastwick neighborhood of Southwest Philadelphia, proposing to adapt it to a community center themed around eco-education with hotel lodging for the nearby John Heinz Wildlife Refuge. Eastwick was largely demolished in the 1960s to clear way for the Urban Renewal vision, which only partially happened due to deindustrialization, depopulation and environmental issues, namely flooding.