There has been a group that has organized to look into the restoring of the auditorium in our old high school on County, Court, and Morgan Streets. 

Here are the minutes from their last meeting ...

Note that the next meeting date is listed if you are interested. ...

The Auditorium Restoration Committee met on Thursday September 26, 2013 at the New Bedford Public Schools Administration Building  (the old New Bedford High School) on County Street.

Meeting stated at 6:35 p.m.

Mike Shea (Class of '70) welcomed everyone and gave a brief explanation on the origin of starting the Auditorium Restoration Committee.

The group had a chance to explore and tour the auditorium – both the first and second floor. This gave everyone a visual look of the work ahead.

The group came together and Mike Shea talked about the following: Fund Raising, Property Assessment and Restoration, Alumni Contact person from each class, PR, create an Alumni Association, and develop a Mission (or Vision) statement. 

The group had an open discussion to make suggestions, ask questions, or just give an opinion. Some suggestions were to look at a budget for the project. Need to get some information on the condition of the roof before anything else. Contact Al Oliveira, Facilities Director for NBPS to help us on this. Contact Durfee to ask about their Alumni Association. Look into MSBA (Massachusetts School Building Assistance) to see if this building qualifies for assistance. This will need to go before the Mayor, Superintendent and/or the School Committee. Look to see if we can come under the Community Foundation Funds to be a tax exempt organization. Contact Ron LaBelle, City Infrastructure Coordinator to see if the city workers can help. Get the present students at the high school involved in this project (Drafting, Media, etc.). Contact a local Historian to give information about the building.

Meeting ended at 7:35 P.m.

****Before we can move forward, we need to have a Mission Statement for this project. What is it that we want to accomplish with this auditorium?  What do you want to see happen to this auditorium when completed?  Is it for the schools only – the community – and who should be in charge of this new and improved auditorium? Please write out a brief Mission Statement and send it to me before the next meeting so that we can discuss this as a group. It shouldn’t be more than two to three sentences. If you send it to me before the meeting, I will work on them to see what common threads there are – if not you can bring it to the meeting.

Thank you for your involvement into this project.

Special thanks to Mike Josefek, Class of 1971 – for his input and knowledge.

THE NEXT MEETING IS Thursday November 14, 2013 starting at 6:30 p.m. Please enter on the Morgan Street side and use the door to the elevator to come in. The Auditorium is on the first floor. The door will be open from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The meeting will not go beyond 8:00 p.m.

Hello:

This is wonderful.  

I think it's a great idea to restore the NBHS County St Auditorium and appreciate those who are willling to work towards that end.  I read the minutes of the meeting posted above carefully.  I am not an expert in building repairs but I remember vividly how the facility looked in our day.  Part of the celebration of our 45th reunion was a visit to the high school building Saturday morning.  It was a well attended event and it ended with all of us sitting in the auditorium.  It was bittersweet to see the effects of time and neglect on that beatiful and historic place.  The carved wood, and the elegance speaks of a time gone by and a prosperity the city may not boast of now.   I believe  that in the century since it was built the auditorium has been the center of much joy and  it could be restored, adapted in use, and become part of the future of the greater New Bedford community.   

I know that our classmates who sat in that auditorium after lunch with their friends every day and attended assemblies, award ceremonies, and heard Mr Gracia pronounce us "Illustrious Seniors" will gladly offer their support.

Well done, Jim Casey