Auditoriums & Performance Spaces

Hartford, Conn., hones in on site for performing arts high school

School system is negotiating to buy Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Hartford campus.
June 25, 2015
2 min read

After searching for three years, school officials in Hartford, Conn., say they have may have found a permanent site for Kinsella Magnet High School of Performing Arts.

The Hartford Courant reports that the school system is negotiating with the New York-based Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) to buy the eight-story building north of the city's downtown that houses the institute's campus in Hartford.

Hartford has a $33 million budget for purchasing and renovating a building for Kinsella's high school grades. The school system is facing a June 30 deadline to identify a site or risk losing a state construction grant that will cover most of the cost of the project.

School administrators want a building with up to 95,000 square feet, an auditorium for 600 people and classroom space for 400 students. The eight-story RPI building sits on about 13 acres just east of Capital Preparatory Magnet School and north of the minor league stadium under construction.

RPI has issued a statement that it "has received a proposal from the City of Hartford Board of Education regarding property at 275 Windsor Street. Rensselaer has not yet had sufficient time to complete a comprehensive review of the proposal."

The city council would have to approve any building acquisition, and no firm timetable has been established for moving the Kinsella high school. 

The school's grades 9 to 11 have been housed temporarily in an industrial area in the city's South End neighborhood; 12th grade will be added in the coming academic year. Kinsella's pre-kindergarten to grade 8 campus is south of downtown.

About the Author

Mike Kennedy

Senior Editor

Mike Kennedy, senior editor, has written for AS&U on a wide range of educational issues since 1999.

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