Built between 1900 and 1920, 38th Street School is an iconic two-story historic building located in Savannah’s Streetcar District. Its most recent occupant, the St. Paul Academy for Boys, closed its doors in 2014, leaving the school untouched for nearly a decade. Under new ownership, the building underwent extensive renovations to convert the existing classrooms, basement, kitchen, and other rooms into 27 boutique apartments, including studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom floorplans.

Incorporating New Design with Historic Preservation

In the process of adapting the historic building for residential purposes, new designs had to be incorporated into the preservation process. With only two of the original windows remaining as a template, the project team had to design and construct more than 90 custom windows throughout the building. The interior staircases that had been enclosed nearly 50 years ago were reopened to honor the school’s original design, an exterior lift and stair were added to make the basement units ADA accessible, and much of the stucco exterior and two-story column entrance were restored.

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FUN FACT

A black and white postcard was one of the only surviving images of the original building and was used as a guide by the project team to preserve the building’s exterior historical elements.

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The original doors, walls, and transoms in the classrooms and administrative rooms were retained while new partitions, which housed all of the MEP systems, transformed the spaces into residential units. In the partially submerged basement, the project team had to completely rework the concrete slab for it to accept the updated finishes, but they were able to retain and restore the original wood tongue-and-groove ceilings.

Typical in historic preservation projects, 38th Street School presented the Choate team and its trade partners with another unforgettable opportunity to bring an important landmark back to life!