Southwest IL school was condemned. $26M grant means students will get a new building
Editor’s note: This story has been updated at 4:55 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 6, to include the correct grant total in the headline.
Children in Venice are getting a new elementary school after their old building was recently condemned and demolished.
Venice District 3 announced it received $26 million in state grant funding to build the new school on the empty lot at 700 Broadway, where the old Venice High School used to be until it was demolished.
The district picked the location because it still owns the property, according to Superintendent Cynthia Tolbert. She said the goal is to start teaching in the new building by May 2025.
Tolbert said the former Venice Elementary School building at 300 S. Fourth Street was condemned in 2020 because of issues with its foundation and demolished early this year. The building was constructed in the 1950s, according to past Belleville News-Democrat reporting.
Children in Venice attended virtual classes at home throughout the 2020-21 school year. They went to school at a temporary location in nearby Granite City during the 2021-22 school year. Tolbert said they will continue using the Granite City location until the new building is ready.
Venice Elementary School teaches children in pre-K through eighth grade. It is the only school in Venice District 3.
Venice has about 84 elementary students on average, based on enrollment figures from 2019 to 2021.
A district committee is in the beginning stages of designing and planning for the construction of the new building. Tolbert said the committee includes four school board members, three teachers, the head custodian, a parent educator, the principal, superintendent and business manager.
Tolbert said she will post updates about the project on the district’s website for parents and community members. Anyone with additional questions can contact Tolbert at the district office.
This story was originally published September 6, 2022 at 3:51 PM.
