SCRANTON -- A real estate developer in Lackawanna County, known for renovating old buildings into apartments, is now working on an abandoned school in Scranton.
Neighbors in west Scranton agreed, the former John Marshall School on Oram Street had potential.
Deborah Tyira has hoped for development there. It used to be a place where she would take her grandchildren to play.
"A few years ago when the children would be coming out, where we live, they would come right past the house. And then they closed down and it got real quiet. So we kind of miss the thing. My grandchildren used to play in here, but not anymore. I'm glad they're doing something with it," Tyira said.
It's tough to tell from the outside, but there's a lot going on inside the old elementary school that closed about six years ago. Real estate developer Art Russo bought the property back in 2014 and is now making headway on turning the school into apartments.
Neighbors told Newswatch 16 that construction started on the school last summer. The work has been encouraging to people who used to go to school here. The building won't be empty for very much longer.
"It was definitely sad to see it sit empty, but driving by it's nice to see it will be put to good use and become the center of the neighborhood again," said Hubie Graham of Scranton.
The developer isn't saying how many apartment units there will be or who he plans to market them to. John Marshall School is the latest in what neighbors have noticed as a trend: turning empty schools into residential space.
"They've made it work in other places. I know they did it down at Hamilton School, the new North Scranton Intermediate School just opened up with the apartments, so that seems to be the trend around here, it must be working," added Neil Trama, III of Scranton.
Neighbors think it will work here, too. There's no word on when the project will be finished.
