A one-time school building on the east side of Arvada has been purchased by the city government and may see some reconfiguration as housing space.
Located at 4905 W. 60th Street, the building for more than a decade was the home to the Early College of Arvada. The charter school announced its closing earlier this year, primarily due to a declining enrollment.
That enrollment saw a count of less than 190 students as of last fall, compared with around 360 students for school year 2018-2019.
Bult in 1973 and substantially renovated in 1996, the two-story structure, designated as a Class C building, sits on a nearly 2-acre site in a largely residential section of the city.
Just weeks after the school announced it would close at the end of the spring 2024 semester, a for sale sign appeared on the lawn to the front of the building.
Perhaps in response to that sign, city officials have since sized up the structure for its potential, with members of the Arvada City Council in mid-July agreeing to purchase the building for $6.3 million.
While some news sources have suggested that the structure will almost certainly be used for housing purposes, a staff document presented to the council said: “While a specific purpose has yet to be defined, the property could be used for locating various non-profits in one location.”
Among the uses for the building suggested in the document: a navigation center and an emergency shelter.
According to a City of Arvada official announcement, the building, which was formerly a branch office for the Colorado Credit Union System, could also be used to gather “various non-profits in one location.”
By Garry Boulard
