Conroe to sell Sam Houston School under plan to revive $30M renovation
The historic Sam Houston Elementary School in Conroe is on the market and a $30 million plan to transform it into housing could be revived .
During Wednesday's Conroe City Council workshop, staff presented information about the property, which has a price tag of $4.3 million for the school and 5.66 acres of the 11-acre property.
The city would keep the remaining 5.33 acres, including the metal buildings on site and the playground.
Nancy Mikeska, assistant city administrator and director of community development, said Kansas-based Overland Property Group might be willing to revive a $30 million plan to renovate the building into 79 apartments.
April Engstrom with Overland Property Group said that after learning of residents' "dissatisfaction" with the company's plan, she and Managing Partner Matt Gillam decided to abandon the project .
Mikeska said there is no contract on the school and no confirmation Overland would purchase the building.
Mikeska said listing the building is the best option for the school, which needs millions in repairs. In addition to deterioration due to age, she said the school was damaged in July when Hurricane Beryl moved across the region.
In July 2020, the city issued certificates of obligation for $4.2 million to purchase the school and the 11 acres it sits on to create a performing arts center. However, the city scrapped the plan when the cost of renovating the historic structure reached $190 million.
Council member Marsha Porter said she, along with other city leaders and a committee of community members, met to consider options for moving forward with a plan to create a performing arts center. But the cost to renovate and operate the building was unattainable, especially for the nonprofit organizations that would be using the facility.
"It became apparent two years ago that this is not the facility for the arts because the costs are too exorbitant," Porter said.
Built in 1938, the building served as Sam Houston Elementary for many years before it was closed and a new campus built in 2007 on Thompson Street. The former school then became the Walter P. Jett Continuing Education Center, which is now at Woodforest Stadium.
