Essex council tours Harrow High School, explores possibilities
School could be used as a town hall, library or police station, says deputy mayor
Harrow District High School could become an OPP station, a new town hall or even a library, according to town of Essex officials who took a tour of the building Wednesday afternoon.
The town is considering buying the shuttered school and using it for some sort of municipal building.
"We've definitely expressed an interest in perhaps purchasing the school. So over the next couple of weeks the school board will be sitting down with administration and our council and giving us the details," explained Essex Deputy Mayor Richard Meloche.
He added the costs and purchase price would still have to worked out, but the town would pay fair market value.
"I know when we walked into the library which was the library for the school I heard a couple of comments,'Oh this would make a good council chambers,'" said Meloche. But, he cautioned, it could cost more to convert the former school into a new town hall than it would to build a new one.
The deputy mayor said the town would definitely like to purchase a sports field from the school board located between the arena and ball diamonds that the town already owns.
A decision on what to do with the school likely won't be made for several months.