Central Platoon School
County: Morgan County
Construction Date: 1928, mid-20th century addition
Threat When Listed: Demolition by Neglect – Vacant
Status: ALERT
Designed by noted architect Frederick Mountjoy (Rocky Mountain Bank Note Co Building, Avalon Theatre in Grand Junction, Del Norte High School, St. Ignatious Loyola Church, etc.) the nearly 50,000 square foot Central Platoon School is a prominent and beautiful architectural landmark that is sited on an entire city block in downtown Brush. Built in 1928, with a modest addition in the mid-20th century, the school was designed for the platoon educational system that emphasized a curriculum focused on activity-based learning and featured multiple teachers per class (as opposed to the more traditional elementary system of one teacher per class per year).
In use as a school until the late 1990s, the building stood vacant for years. Pigeons infested the building and a recent effort removed more than 2000 birds. Water damage to the ceilings has also become increasingly apparent over the past few years.
A group of local community leaders emerged with a strong interest in saving the building. The Town of Brush has allocated significant financial resources to a highly successful streetscaping project, and many in town see the successful rehabilitation and use of Central School as the next logical step towards reaching the town's beautification and economic development goals.
In the last few years assessments have been done on the building to analyze its stability and possibilities for its reuse. The building exhibits remarkably high architectural and interior integrity, including original floors, doors, transoms, and exterior windows. After an abatement of the pigeon infestation and waste, a new local developer now has plans to carry out preservation sensitive adaptive reuse for housing and a community center. CPI continues to develop a relationship with the owner to support these efforts.
None at this time