PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The School District of Philadelphia cut the ribbon on the new T.M. Peirce Elementary School building in North Philadelphia on Wednesday, replacing an antiquated, asbestos-contaminated facility.
The school made headlines in 2019 when damaged asbestos and lead paint were found throughout the more than 100-year-old building at 23rd and Cambria streets. Students were moved to an alternate site and the building was demolished — and then COVID-19 hit.
Two years ago, crews broke ground on the three-story, $44 million facility. Now, it’s ready to open.
“We lived through the construction,” said principal Anthony Gordon. “We lived through COVID. We lived through the lead stabilization and asbestos, to now, moving back home after the winter break.”
The new LEED-certified (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building has amenities that didn’t exist in the old building — a library, a digital lab, art and music rooms, new lighting, playground equipment, and an actual cafeteria.
“Food preparation and serving was outside in the hallway between two bathrooms,” Gordon said of the old Peirce building. “That’s where we were. So now that students are coming back to a brand-new building that has a real cafeteria, it’s a big uplift.”
District Chief Operating Officer Oz Hill said the building will be open to the neighborhood as well.
“That’s going to be nestled right in the middle of that community that’s been underserved for decades,” he added.
The district said it is the first new school building to open in that neighborhood in more than seven decades.
About 200 K-5 students have been attending classes at the former Pratt Elementary School seven blocks away while their new school was being built. Students will report to Peirce after the winter break, on Jan. 3.