The halls of McKinley and Jefferson elementary schools have been quiet for years. No clatter of lunch trays, no shuffle of little feet, no morning announcements crackling through the intercom. But if all goes according to plan, the sounds of life will return in a new form: families unlocking apartment doors and neighbors chatting on stairwells.
It’s the culmination of more than four years of effort. And, as Thrive Allen County CEO Lisse Regehr told the USD 257 school board Monday night, the dream is within reach.
After two attempts to secure funding for the project failed, the community learned the “Iola Schools Redevelopment” plan had been awarded state and federal tax credits through the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation to start the wheels in motion.
“I asked you to take a chance and promised that Thrive would do everything possible to make the application as strong as it could be. Tonight, I get to share the good news,” Regehr said.
It’s a win that Regehr described as a turning point in the redevelopment of McKinley and Jefferson into housing that will serve low-income residents, as well as those paying market rates. Lincoln Elementary will be the focus of a future application, Regehr said.
THE IDEA to convert Iola’s three elementary schools into living quarters began about eight years ago when efforts to build a new elementary school included community forums where concern over the historic schools’ fates was a recurring theme. District administrators realized finding a use for the abandoned schools would help sway voters approve the $35 million school bond issue, the bulk of which would go toward building a new elementary school.
With the help of Thrive Allen County, who had a connection with BNIM, a global architecture and design firm with offices in Kansas City, school officials were able to present concrete examples of how the schools could be converted into apartments.
Two years after the 2019 bond issue passed, the three entities officially joined forces with plans to repurpose McKinley, Jefferson, and Lincoln.
The buildings were vacated as elementary schools in 2022, when the newly constructed Iola Elementary School opened.
McKinley and Lincoln have been utilized for other purposes, including for SAFE BASE, the district’s afterschool and summer school program and the ANW Interlocal. The Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center also temporarily used Lincoln for office space.
Also in 2022, BNIM signed an agreement with USD 257 to hold all three buildings while pursuing financing.
BNIM’s application for Low Income Housing Tax Credits fell through in 2023 as did its application in 2024, leaving the project in limbo.
“It’s been a minute,” Regehr told the board with a smile. “I know it was a big decision last year and there was a lot of discussion,” as to whether to pursue the tax credits again. “But I hope you feel good about it now, and I think the community will be really excited to see what’s to come.”
THIS YEAR’S application also received a major boost from the Health Forward Foundation. The nonprofit doubled its match requirement from $250,000 to $500,000, giving BNIM the maximum points possible in the tax credit scoring process.
“All three entities — Thrive, BNIM, and Health Forward — worked together to make this happen,” Regehr said. “I definitely want to thank Health Forward for stepping up, and I want to thank the school board for taking a chance on this project.”
BNIM’s winning proposal will convert McKinley and Jefferson elementary schools into a total of 49 rental units, including 10 duplexes at the McKinley site, with the rest consisting of apartments.
