$80 million Roosevelt High rebuild, Black history museum picking up steam

Momentum is building for a long-sought African American museum and library at the site of the historic Roosevelt High School in West Palm Beach.

About 70 people gathered last Wednesday to discuss the project at a town hall meeting led by Danita DeHaney, president and CEO of the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties.

Construction of the $80 million campus that will include the African American Museum and Research Library began with a ground-breaking in February at the former Roosevelt site at Tamarind Avenue and 15th Street.

On Sept. 6, the Palm Beach County School Board committed $30 million on top of an initial $20 million. And now, a newly formed board is leading the fundraising for the remaining $30 million.

Board members include County Administrator Verdenia Baker, County Commissioner Mack Bernard, state Rep. Bobby Powell and DeHaney.

The museum, library and cultural center have been in the planning stages since the high school closed with the graduating Class of 1970. Over the years, three groups interested in preserving the history of the school and the neighborhood sprouted.

Cora Perry (Class of 1965), is president of the Industrial/Roosevelt High School National Alumni Association and Friends; Annie Ruth Nelson (Class of 1967), is president of the African Research Library and Cultural Center of Palm Beach County; and Debbye Raing (Class of 1966), is president of the Palm Beach County African Diaspora Historical and Cultural Society.

All three had a common goal, so they joined forces.

"Now we're one voice," Perry said.

And they're being heard. The school that was so important to them is finally showing progress as Pirtle Construction of Fort Lauderdale works on Phase 1.

Phase 1

Phase 1 covers the renovation of the gym and welding building, along with construction of a vocational education center.

This phase, expected to cost $20 million, is being paid for and managed by the school district and is expected to be completed by May 2025.

Along with a lot of demolition, the stripping of the interior of the gym has been completed, school district Chief Operating Officer Joe Sanches said. He also reported that 51% of the subcontractors working on the project are small, local businesses. A significant number of them are African-American owned.

Phase 2

Phase 2, also paid for by the school district and costing $31 million, includes the renovations of two buildings along with the construction of the planned 20,000-square-foot African American Museum and Research Library.

Project managers are searching for an architect, and have narrowed it down to five finalists, Executive Project Manager Bill Watson of the Community Foundation said. Watson formed an advisory committee made up of Perry, Nelson and Raing to speak to the architects about the historic importance of the site. He said they expect to select an architect by January.

One local firm made the cut. REG Architects , established over 30 years ago by the father and son architectural team, Rick and Ricardo Gonzalez, has been active in the preservation of many buildings in Florida. Today, Rick oversees the firm and for years led free tours of the city's historic buildings for the Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum in West Palm Beach.

"We should take pride that these firms want to work on this project," DeHaney said Wednesday.

That enthusiasm is shared by the community and the county.

"We're ready to rock 'n' roll," Baker said. "We want to show the impact Roosevelt had on the entire community."

Phase 3

Phase 3 is in the fundraising stage. Organizers expect about $1 million from the county and $30 million from private donors for interior museum and library finishes, expansion space and storage.

"The space will be open, flexible, with as much technology as possible to make it useful and ready for change," Watson said. "We want to be ready for the future."

The museum, adjacent to the gymnasium, will have gardens and green space.

It will be home to Ineria Hudnell's collection of newspaper clippings, pictures and artifacts that document African-American history in Palm Beach County. Called the "living heart" of Black history before she died in 2018 at age 97, Hudnell taught school for over three decades, including at Roosevelt High.

Bernard reported that the county commission voted unanimously to make a $1 million gift to the project.

Another group that made a significant donation is Palm Beach Venture Philanthropy, which helps pay for innovative community-driven solutions. The venture fund committed $500,000 to restore the campus with the school district, the Community Foundation and others.

School Board Member Edwin Ferguson thanked the alumni for stepping up, especially the core women. "This project will benefit this neighborhood, this county, this state and the country. I will continue to be as direct as I need to be to see it done," he said.

Palm Beach County School Superintendent Mike Burke spoke about a conversation he had with a native of the area.

"Don't we have an obligation to the community to preserve these buildings?" the man asked, and Burke knew he was right. Jeremiah Stewart, the principal of Roosevelt Middle School, said, "We've got that old Roosevelt feeling. The one where the answer is always 'yes.'"

Other members of the museum board are Julie Fisher Cummings, adjunct visiting professor at the University of Miami; David Lawrence, CEO of the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County; Andre Gonzalez, senior vice president at Bank of America; Dr. Rainford Knight, chief digital transformation officer at GA Telesis; Francine Walker, marketing and events consultant; Ferguson; Watson; and Mary Katherine Morales, vice president for philanthropic services at the Community Foundation. Three more members will be appointed.

With commitments from local governments, the pieces are falling into place, DeHaney said. T"What makes this project so powerful is that it has reached the point where significant financial resources have been committed from the school district and the county," she said.

"We want to be a beacon to the community," Raing said. "After 52 years, this is our time. This is our season."