Charleston, Beaufain Street, Memminger Elementary School

Charleston, Beaufain Street, Memminger Elementary School


Image by hdes.copeland
Charleston, SC. Memminger Elementary School, 20 Beaufain Street. Memminger School, 2nd floor porch, interior courtyard. Photo taken October 2006.

Originally constructed in 1953-54, school underwent a total renovation which was completed in 2001. That multi-million dollar project included roof replacement and equipping the school with all new furnishings and fixtures.

In 1998 a complete analysis of the Charleston region was conducted with published results relating to what might be expected if an earthquake were to strike the area with a similar force as the one in August of 1886, now estimated to have registered 7.3 on the Richter Scale. The report was designed to review what might happen to the urban area’s public buildings and infrastructure given the dramatic development differences that exist between Charleston in 1886 and the same city in 1998, slightly more than 100 years later. Representatives of all public agencies in the area, including top administrators from the Charleston County School District, were present for the oral presentation of the findings. The published report and conclusions was also given to the local school district facilities director soon afterwards and prior to 2001.

In the fall of 2003 and spring of 2004, the architectural firm of Harvey Gantt of Charlotte, NC, reported that the school was structurally sound and with some program design changes would likely serve the community’s needs for the future. In the fall of 2009, school district officials ordered a different engineering study, without an RFP, designed to project liabilities in the event of an earthquake registering 5.0 or greater. Five schools were singled out against an inventory of over 80 school facilities, many with conditions at greater risk than the ones singled out. The structural analysis of each of the 5 schools, all built before 1998 and prior to the implimentation of the IBC, indicated that safety risks existed in the event of a cataclismic event. The reports also indicated that each building could be made safe by following accepted practices for retrofitting structural supports to meet current seismic codes. It was not required that any of the five schools be demolished if a standard structural retrofit was attempted.

In early 2010, school district officials decided the building was seismicly unsafe and ordered the school to be immediately vacated and torn down. Community objections were ignored.

Photo and text initially posted: January 2008
Revised: 12 August 2010
Copyrights Reserved: hdescopeland

Tags:Beaufain, Charleston, Elementary, Memminger, School, Street