Charter School to Buy Former Savio High Site

The former Savio High School building has been vacant since the school closed back in 2007. The Edward Brooke Charter School is now planning to convert the former high school into a 475 student, K-8 facility for the 2014-2015 school year.

Following a private developer’s decision to abandon his plans to build condos at the former Savio High School building, the Edward Brooke Charter School has stepped in and will make the former high school its new homes in Eastie. Currently the Brooke, which opened this year at the former home of the Salesians Boys & Girls Club on Paris Street, is planning a 475 student, K-8 facility at Savio.

Diversified Project Management, Inc. (DPM), a Newton, based firm announced last week that it has been hired to provide comprehensive project management services for the Brooke Charter School facility in Eastie.  DPM Project Executive Frank Kennedy and Senior Project Manager, Lorrie Adamz will provide project management services including organizing community meetings, pre-construction, construction administration and move planning.  The Commonwealth’s Designer Selection Board selected the design team and the project is expected to complete for the 2014-2015 academic year.

DPM is currently engaged in similar projects for the Codman Square Health & Education Center in Boston and for Westfield State University.

The existing building is approximately 30,000 square feet across three floors.  Brooke is also in the process of purchasing adjacent lots that will allow for the expansion of approximately 10,000 square feet.  The Savio building has been empty for several years and requires extensive renovation. While the Paris Street facility is just a temporary home for the Brooke, the Savio facility will serve as the school’s permanent future home.

“Our organization is extremely happy and excited about the opportunity to serve families in East Boston and Chelsea,” said Brooke’s East Boston Principal Molly Cole. “We are grateful for the warm reception we’ve received from the community this year. We are now accepting applications for grades K2, 5th and 6th for the 2013-2014 school year.  We look forward to continuing to provide a college-preparatory education to local scholars for years to come.”

In 2011, The Coliseum Investment Group, who was responsible for the condo development at 145-147 Everett Street, wanted to turn Savio into 21 market-rate condominiums consisting of one and two bedroom units as well as studios.

Coliseum Investment Group signed a purchase and sale agreement with the Salesians and 100 percent of the proceeds from the sale was to go to the Salesians Boys & Girls Club located across the street at the former Savio Hall.

However, residents were skeptical about the project from the beginning with Coliseum Investment Group unable to guarantee the community they could finance the project.

In the end the deal fell through and Coliseum Investment Group pulled out.

The mission of the Brooke Charter Schools is to provide an academically rigorous public education to students from the city of Boston and Chelsea that will ensure that they are prepared to enter into succeed in college. The school is named after Senator Edward W. Brooke, the first African-American elected to the U.S. Senate and the first and only black senator from Massachusetts. After attending Brooke alumni are have gone on to excel in high school and college, attending and succeeding in schools like Milton Academy, Boston Latin Academy, and University of Massachusetts – Amherst.

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