Cape preservation board hopes to preserve Lorimier School memories, find way to save building

Cape Girardeau Historic Preservation Commission members hope to preserve memories of the former Lorimier School, now city hall, in hopes of finding a way to save the historic brick structure.

The commission’s efforts come as the city council has discussed the possibility of constructing a new city hall at the Independence Street site.

Commission members discussed the future of the former school at its meeting earlier this year.

Commission member Alyssa Phares said Monday she and others are concerned city officials may conclude it’s not feasible to save the more-than-80-year-old building.

“We want to put some focus on Lorimier School,” she said.

Cape Girardeau City Hall at 401 Independence St. is seen Monday in Cape Girardeau.Jacob Wiegand

Toward that end, commissioners want to interview former Lorimier School students and secure memorabilia reflecting the history of the one-time school, Phares said.

She said she and others who champion historic preservation understand it is not feasible to save every old building.

The commission’s effort in this case is to take “a step back and look and see what we have,” Phares said. “We want to gather the history.”

If the city builds a new city hall, Phares said she hopes the old structure could be incorporated into the design, or another use could be found for the building.

Phares said architects can do “some amazing things” to repurpose old buildings. Perhaps it could be turned into a bed-and-breakfast place, she suggested.

City planner Ryan Shrimplin said commissioner members are taking a positive approach to wanting to preserve the building.

“They just want to bring awareness of the value of historic properties,” he said.

Shrimplin called the brick structure “one of the last few old school buildings left in the city. They are kind of a dying breed.”

He said he would like to see the Lorimier School history compiled in a book or video.

Shrimplin and Phares said preserving the school’s history for future generations is a worthwhile goal regardless of what happens to the building itself.

The city hired St. Louis-bases Chiodini Architects to study possible sites for a new city hall. The firm issued its report to city officials in November.

The architects said the council could renovate the existing city hall and construct an addition, but it would be less expensive to build a new facility.

Architect Christopher Chiodini estimated it would cost $23.8 million to renovate and expand the existing city hall compared to just more than $19 million to construct an entirely new building.

City manager Scott Meyer told the council at that time “the numbers say build new.”

But Shrimplin said Monday city officials have yet to make any final decision regarding a city hall project.

Built in 1937 as an elementary school, the city government has used the building as city hall since 1978.

Classes were held in the building until 1975, when it closed because of declining enrollment.

The building was sold to the city for $200,000 in January 1976. The city then offered it to the Cape Girardeau Public Library Board.

They considered renovating the building for use as the city’s library. But in June 1976, the board turned down the offer, deciding it would be best to construct a new facility.

In September 1978, after remodeling, the building reopened as city hall.

Lorimier School was built on the site of the first Lorimier School. The original school was built in 1871 at a cost of $15,000, according to Southeast Missourian archives.

That first Lorimier School was built despite public opposition to a construction bond issue from businessmen and residents who were satisfied with church schools or felt children could learn to read and write at home, newspaper records show.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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