A historic Roanoke Rapids building that has served the community for more than eight decades would be torn down as part of a proposed $52 million school construction project — a plan that drew little discussion about the Armory’s fate when it was presented to the Roanoke Rapids Graded School District Board of Trustees.
The proposal calls for construction of a new Career and Technical Education center and classroom building on the site of the Roanoke Rapids Early College, which currently occupies the former National Guard Armory on Hamilton Street.
The project would also construct a new competition gymnasium at Roanoke Rapids High School and develop new baseball, softball, tennis and multipurpose athletic facilities.
RRGSD is seeking $52 million through the state’s Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund. Halifax County would be responsible for a 5 percent local match totaling approximately $2.6 million.
School Board Told Project Would Replace Armory
Superintendent Bennett Jones presented the updated grant application to the RRGSD Board of Trustees during its Sept. 15 meeting.
Jones told the board the application contained new information and read portions of the project description aloud. The proposal calls for a new CTE center and classroom building on the existing Early College site and would allow both high school and Early College students to access expanded CTE programs.
In explaining the need for the project, Jones discussed conditions inside the Armory, which was constructed in 1941.
“The current Roanoke Rapids Early College students attend class in the old Armory building built in 1941 that again has a gym space with no air conditioning or climate control. Classrooms are makeshift rooms from old storage closets and are cut off from each other.”
Jones said the configuration also creates safety concerns because there are entrances directly into classrooms from the street and students sometimes have to go outside to move from one classroom to another.
Later in the discussion, a board member asked what would happen to the existing cafeteria, band and chorus areas under the construction proposal.
Jones said those areas were not included in the current project.
“Right now that building is not touched as part of the project. It would just be replacing the armory.”
Jones said the cafeteria, existing gym and band room would remain untouched under the current proposal, although renovations or expansion could potentially be considered during the design phase.
None of the Roanoke Rapids Graded School District Board of Trustees members seemed to question tearing down the Armory for the new building.
Following Jones’ presentation, one board member praised his work developing the grant application and determining what would satisfy the state’s funding criteria, saying his efforts were “greatly appreciated by this board.”
Commissioners Question Armory’s Future
The proposal came before the Halifax County Board of Commissioners six days later, on Sept. 21, because county approval is required and the county would be responsible for the approximately $2.6 million local match.
During that meeting, Commissioner Thomas Barrett directly questioned Jones about the building.
“What are you going to do with the Armory building?”
Jones responded by describing additional problems with the structure, including the condition of its upper floor and lack of HVAC.
“The upstairs of the [Armory] has been condemned. It’s not, no HVAC in there. The classrooms are separated out into areas where you have to pass through one classroom to the next.”
That description of the classroom configuration differed from the one Jones gave the school board six days earlier. On Sept. 15, Jones said the classrooms were “cut off from each other” and that students often had to go outside to move from one to another. At the commissioners meeting, he described areas where students have to pass through one classroom to reach another.
The two descriptions could refer to different portions of the building, but Jones did not explain the difference during either presentation.
Barrett then raised the historical significance of the Armory.
“I ask you that because I think just like the [Armory] is a part of this now, but a part of this now for a long time.”
Barrett said the school district owns the property but argued that the building has significance beyond the school system.
“I realize it belongs to the school district, but that thing belongs to everybody in Roanoke Rapids.”
Barrett said he wanted the public involved before additional county money was committed.
“Until you talk to the citizens of Roanoke Rapids and get their input on what they think you should do, I am not going to look for another dollar.”
Jones: District Must Move Forward
Jones responded to Barrett by explaining his responsibility as superintendent.
“What I’ve been tasked to do is look at what’s best for the school district and have a school district to move forward while honoring our past. We also can’t be chained by it.”
Jones said the district could honor its history while also preparing facilities for current students and those who will attend the schools decades into the future.
The exchange marked a notable difference between the two public meetings. No similar discussion about preserving the Armory or seeking public input on its demolition occurred during the Sept. 15 school board presentation.
An 85-Year-Old Roanoke Rapids Landmark
The Armory’s history extends well beyond its current use by the Early College.
Built in 1940-41, the Armory was designed by Raleigh architects Linthicum and Linthicum to reflect the “classic Elizabethan” Tudor style of the adjacent Roanoke Rapids High School, creating an architectural connection between the two neighboring buildings.
According to historical documentation for the Roanoke Rapids Historic District, the Works Progress Administration provided $44,999 toward the building’s $69,797 construction cost.
The local National Guard unit was activated in 1940 as Company B of the 105th Medical Regiment under the command of Dr. T.J. Taylor. During World War II, the unit became Bravo Company of the 119th Infantry, 30th Division, with a contingent of approximately 100 men.
The building later served another community purpose, housing the Roanoke Rapids Public Library from the late 1940s until the current library was completed in 1962.
The National Guard continued to use the Armory until the 1980s, when the building was acquired by the Roanoke Rapids school district.
The former Armory is also identified as a contributing property within the Roanoke Rapids Historic District.
$52 Million Application
Jones told the school board that the district chose to seek $52 million — the maximum grant amount associated with a middle-school-sized project — because the proposed classroom building and gymnasium would be approximately comparable in square footage.
The county’s required 5 percent contribution would be approximately $2.6 million from the Halifax County General Fund.
The proposal would construct the CTE and classroom building, a new competition gymnasium with locker rooms, training facilities, weight room and health classrooms, and consolidate several athletic facilities around the high school campus.
The grant application also says the CTE center could accommodate community college courses and potentially provide educational opportunities for adults and recent graduates after regular school hours.
The Halifax County Board of Commissioners ultimately approved the district’s grant application unanimously. Commissioner Sammy Webb made the motion, which was seconded by Vice-Chair Chenoa Davis.
The application must now compete for funding through the state’s Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund.
For the Armory, however, the proposal places the future of one of Roanoke Rapids’ longstanding public buildings squarely within the larger discussion over the school district’s future facilities — and, following Barrett’s questions Monday night, whether the public will have an opportunity to weigh in before the building comes down.
