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| Groundbreaking for Garfield Arms Apartment Building |
Garfield Elementary School was constructed in 1901, with an addition built in 1955. In 2015, the Moline-Coal Valley School District closed the school, sending students to Hamilton and Lincoln-Irving elementary schools.
That same year, Gorman & Company, of Oregon, Wisconsin, bought the school for $75,000. When completed, the renovated building will offer 52 one-bedroom and five two-bedroom apartments for low- and moderate-income seniors earning between 30-60 percent of area median income.
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| "I liked the old Gashouse Gang Garfield better." Jim Kron turned away, so they could not see the tears. |
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| We loved Mrs. Park. I can remember most of the faces and half of the names. Let's see. Front row from left: Linda Hicks, Greg Jackson, Kathleen Wilcox, unknown boy, unknown girl, John Schneck, Ann Pascall. Middle row: George Small, unknown girl, unknown boy, unknown boy, Billie Seasland, unknown girl, Jim McCandless, Jenal Vencus. Back row: Terry Thompson, Tamara Gustus, Bonnie ?, Steve Warren, then Jeff Hall on the far right, Cathy Pobanz next to him. The rest are unknown at the moment. |
The school's corridors will be brought back to their original condition with restored ceilings. Classrooms will be renovated into apartments, and the gym space will be converted to house common space and amenities, including a multipurpose room, a kitchen and a fitness center.
A three-story wood-framed addition also will be added to the east side of the existing building.
The redevelopment will be constructed to Enterprise Green Communities and Energy Star standards, using energy efficient appliances and mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems designed to reduce overall operating expenses.
New roofs will be completed at both wings, and new energy efficient storm windows will be provided at the inside of the existing windows.
Financing partners for the project include the Illinois Housing Development Authority, JPMorgan Chase, RBC Capital Markets and Greater Metropolitan Area housing Authority of Rock Island County.
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| Guy Johnson stopped by to take some pictures of the old classic. We still remember the new addition, which is now about 65 years old. |
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| Like other teachers, Miss Dickson spent her own money on the class. |
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| Liz Copeland's mom was a favorite teacher among many great ones. |
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| Mrs. Forsyth was another teacher everyone remembered with great affection. |
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| No-o-o-o-o-o! |
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| This classroom project is where an engineer's career was born. |
