Another community engagement session scheduled for Bruce Street ruins
Martin Rickles Studio staff will host a second Bruce Street School community engagement session Dec. 11 from 1 until 4 p.m. at the site of the Historic Bruce Street School ruins located at 2449 Bruce St., Lithonia.
Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance (AMHAA) officials said input from the second community engagement session will help determine the future of the Bruce Street School Ruins.
The event will be set up so that people can come and go as they please, according to AMHAA officials, but organizers said different events will take place throughout the community engagement session.
According to AMHAA officials, Bruce Street School dates to the 1930s when local Black leaders bought land on which to build a community school. Officials said the first graduating high school class—around 1943—included three students. By the time the school closed in 1968, there were more than a dozen elementary and eight high school classrooms.
AMHAA officials posted a presentation that includes ideas for the renovation. The ideas might not be used after the community engagement sessions are complete, but former AMHAA Director of Interpretation Sarah Lisle said they are looking at “how to stabilize what we have and how to make it safe [and] accessible for the public to interact with it.”
Proposed ideas include building new structures around or inside the ruins, incorporating community gardens, and engaging with the senior center.
Martin Rickles Studio staff and AMHAA officials hosted the first community engagement session Nov. 14. AMHAA officials said there was a good turnout and helped create excitement among community members about the possibilities for the historic school site.
Event organizer said street parking is available in the surrounding neighborhood. The press release states that some seating will be available, but it is recommended that participants bring a chair for their convenience.
This community engagement session will be completely in-person, but AMHAA officials said future sessions will feature a virtual component for those who are unable to physically attend.
