West Philadelphia High School is one of the oldest standing high schools in the district of Philadelphia, and the district is currently reviewing its options for rebuilding it.
The district is examining two possible scenarios for the new structure.
Choices involve either tearing down the school and rebuilding on the same site at 48th and Walnut streets or building a new school on what is now the athletic field, at 48th and Locust streets, Philadelphia School District CEO Paul Vallas said.
A third option being considered is to move the school to 4601 Market St., he added.
There is a pressing need to modernize the building, Deputy Chief Academic Officer Albert Bichner said.
Vallas agreed that the condition of the school necessitates a renovation.
"The building is run-down and obsolete, and the children in the community deserve a better school," he said.
He added that building on the current athletic field is the option most favored by the community because the students wouldn't have to be temporarily relocated.
"Once that new school is opened, we could then convert [the current school building] into an athletic field," Vallas added.
He said that if the school were built on the Market Street site, the Reliance Building that currently stands there would have to be torn down, and the transition process would take longer.
The final decision will reflect an upcoming vote by the School Reform Commission, Bichner said. The SRC is a governing body of appointees from the state of Pennsylvania and the city of that serves as the district's school board.
The district is basing its recommendations for the SRC on the results of a year-long planning process conducted by Concordia LLC, a community-planning and architecture firm, in collaboration with the West Philadelphia community, Bichner said.
Concordia partner Bobbie Hill said that several architects and engineers had been called into the high school to evaluate its facilities and determined that the building wasn't worth keeping.
Bichner said that the main problems with the current facility include its roof and brick and masonry work and its heating and cooling systems, which "have become antiquated and inefficient." He said that the school needs to be re-wired, as well.
Bichner added that the rebuilding of the high school will allow the school district to move closer toward its goal of making schools smaller and more effective.
"This is not just a redesign of facilities, but an educational redesign so that we can better meet the needs of our students," he said.
About 1,600 students are currently enrolled at the school, down from a high of 2,000, Bichner said.
The district hopes to make enrollment go down even further by providing other options for decreasing the school's size, such as increasing the number of high schools throughout the city from 59 to 80 within the next three years.
"The more choices you have and the more vigilant you are about exploring your choices and options, the greater the likelihood you will land in a high-quality educational program," Vallas said. "We've locked ourselves in a campaign to increase the number of choices for young people."
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