Former Marinette school sold to developer

Garfield Elementary School in Marinette on August 20, 2019. PC: Fox 11 Online

MARINETTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — After years of discussion, Marinette’s former Garfield Elementary School was sold to a housing developer.

The school closed at the end of the 2021-22 academic year as part of building consolidation efforts in the district.

St. Thomas Aquinas Academy, a private Catholic school, was among the interested buyers, but the district resisted a sale to what it considered a competitor.

At the school board meeting Monday, the district agreed to sell the site for $218,000 to Woda Cooper Companies, an Ohio-based firm which specializes in affordable housing. It plans to convert the building into housing for those 55 and older, the district said.