Five Mile Schoolhouse passes first historic test
The Spokane City-County Historic Landmarks Commission unanimously approved two nominations for the Five Mile Schoolhouse, 8621 N. Five Mile Road, to be listed in the Spokane Register and National Register of Historic Places at a hearing May 19. If listed in the National Register, the schoolhouse will also be included in the Washington State Heritage Register.
The Spokane Register of Historic Places is a local government’s list of properties that have contributed to the community’s history. Nominations to the register must be accompanied by owner consent, and properties must meet certain criteria.
Mead School District, as owner, will then sign a management agreement saying the district will maintain the building’s historic architectural style.
According to Linda Yoemans, a local historic preservation planner hired by the Five Mile Schoolhouse preservation committee to complete the application process, the nominations will now be submitted to the Spokane County commissioners for final approval this month.
As for the National Register, once approved, the nomination is sent to the state historic preservation officer, who will schedule the nomination for review at the next state advisory board meeting on June 24. If approved, the nomination will be forwarded to the National Parks Service for final approval. The lengthy process can take from 180 to 300 days.
The brick two-room schoolhouse was built in 1939. It is at Five Mile and Strong roads, straddling city-county boundaries. Since closing in 1970, the schoolhouse was used briefly as a community center, and then as storage for the Mead District.
Approximately $1.7 million of the $37.7 million school bond approved by Mead voters on May 18, will be used to convert the schoolhouse into a home for the Mead Education Partnership Program. The program offers a variety of K-12 academic courses to home school students. Enrollment in the program has increased from 30 to 170 students over the last four years. The schoolhouse will give the program its own gym, water and plumbing and would double the class space, while preserving the historic site.
Gary Lauerman, a member of the Historic Preservation Committee, hopes that a portion of the building will be used as a Five Mile Prairie Museum and, like other schools in the Mead District, the schoolhouse will be available for community events in the evenings and on weekends. Lauerman sees the Five Mile Schoolhouse Preservation group acting much like The Friends of Manito, a group that raises money for special projects in the park.