Sign up for Chalkbeat Detroit’s free newsletter to keep up with the city’s public school system and Michigan education policy.A week after facing backlash from alumni and community members over the upcoming demolition of the historic Cooley High School, the Detroit school district is giving more insight into why the long-vacant building is being razed and the sports complex that will be built in its place. The Cooley sports complex will come to fruition in multiple phases, Detroit Public Schools Community District Assistant Superintendent of Operations Machion Jackson said Wednesday. The first, which is set to be completed Sept. 30, includes demolishing the building and resurfacing the walking track and natural turf field. The second phase is set to be completed in fall 2028 and will consist of an artificial turf field, a track, additional parking, and a practice area for shot put and discus. The complex also has a phase three with an indoor complex, but the district needs more funding to complete that part of the project, Jackson said. “We’re showing phase three as a concept, but this is not funded,” she said. Dozens of Cooley alumni and community members gathered Wednesday inside the Renaissance High School auditorium to hear more about the project, many voicing opposition to the demolition and how they felt there was little community engagement about the complex and the razing. A virtual meeting was also held Thursday for alumni and community members who couldn’t attend the in-person meeting or who live out of state. Salvage work at Cooley began in recent days with the installation of fencing to secure the property, said DPSCD spokeswoman Chrystal Wilson.Cooley alum Leonard Reid said Wednesday evening that he heard the news about the demolition on social media and wondered why TV news wasn’t reporting anything about it. “It’s ridiculous that we have to find out on social media about this plan,” he said. Demolition of Cooley, which closed in 2010, is expected to get underway this summer. Superintendent Nikolai Vitti told BridgeDetroit earlier this month that the decision was informed by community complaints regarding blight and crime.Detroit Public Schools Community District Assistant Superintendent of Operations Machion Jackson speaks during a community meeting on the demolition of Cooley High School.Jackson noted during Wednesday’s meeting that she received numerous complaints from residents and businesses who live near Cooley about the condition of the building and its future. There have been fires, illegal dumping, prostitution, and a fatal assault occurred behind the school in 2018.The Cooley sports complex, which was announced last year, will use $15 million from the state for the planning, design, and construction of the outdoor football field and outdoor track, green space, and updated parking lots. The DPSCD Foundation raised the remaining $10 million for the project. The complex will mainly serve as the home for sports teams at nearby Cody High School, but will also be open to the community and to district partners like the Pop Warner youth football program and Detroit Police Athletic League, Jackson said. Vitti said the field that Cody students use now is owned by the city, and attempts to buy the land has been unsuccessful. Members of the Cody and Denby football teams were in attendance Wednesday, donning their green and yellow jerseys. Shortly after receiving the $15 million state grant, Jackson said, the district began hosting community engagement meetings. The meetings were held at a DPSCD school, a church across the street from Cooley, a Detroit City Council meeting, and then a virtual meeting in March. The project initially included plans to preserve a part of Cooley for a locker room, weight room, community gathering space, and dedication to Cooley alumni. However, preserving the historic front facade would have cost an additional $2 million, Vitti told BridgeDetroit. Architects and district officials have been unable to explore much of the school’s interior because it’s unsafe, Jackson said. “The last time I was in the building, I was right on the edge of the auditorium, and … there was a gaping hole,” Jackson said. Vitti has said that the district will preserve some architectural features from Cooley, like bricks, terra cotta medallions, the entry archways, and the bell from the tower of the building.Those Cooley touches will be added during phase two, Jackson said Wednesday. Many of the bricks will be cleaned and given away to alumni, but others may be used to rebuild something else on the site. In addition, the bell towers could be placed on the corners of Hubbell Avenue and Chalfonte Street or at Hubbell and Fenkell. Community members weigh in Chet Pitts, a 2001 Cooley alum, said Cooley is a place of many memories.He told BridgeDetroit that the teachers there made an impact in his life, like English teacher Charlotte Smith. He even met his wife, Sarah Pitts, at Cooley. Pitts was sad to see Cooley close and is disappointed about the impending demolition. He believes the district is diminishing the feelings of other Cooley alumni and the overall community. Pitts created a petition to save Cooley. As of Thursday afternoon, the petition had 1,087 signatures. “The thing is, when they erase our history, you lose identity, you lose culture, you lose memories,” he said at the meeting. Meanwhile, Maura Cady-Rye talked about her attempts to save the old Hudson’s building in downtown Detroit before it was demolished in 1998. Her grandparents used to live a few blocks away from Cooley on Ardmore, and Cady-Rye grew up nearby in Rosedale Park. Cady-Rye, who now lives in Ypsilanti, said Cooley is also historic and asked the district to reconsider saving a portion of the building. “I’m not asking to take little bits and pieces off of it and put it someplace else,” she said. “Let’s save the front of the building while you guys are tearing down the rest of it. Let’s save the front portion to say, ‘This is a historic building,’ because buildings don’t get built that way anymore. Keep everybody happy. Why can’t you guys do that?” Grace Moore said she understands that the district will move forward with the sports complex, but asked how Cooley alumni like herself will be represented in the project. “How can we get a part, and how can you guarantee us that our flag, our championships, the history of Cooley will still be there?” Moore said. Meanwhile, Rafeal Peterson is eager for change. He said it’s unfair to residents to continue letting the Cooley building stay vacant. As a 1988 Cooley graduate and a former basketball coach at the school, Peterson will keep those memories with him but agrees that it’s time for a new chapter. “It’s my old school, but hey, it’s not a family member, it’s a building,” he said. “It’s bittersweet, but I’m not gonna be crying about it. It’s a good opportunity for Cody and anybody who uses it.” Micah Walker is a reporter for BridgeDetroit. You can reach her at mwalker@bridgedetroit.com.
