Demolition Progressing on Jacobs Junior High School Campus

This is a press release from Eureka City Schools:

As many have noticed, the Jacobs Junior High campus is busy with activity, as demolition crews and District staff work on various projects. Eureka City Schools has received calls from various community members inquiring about the status of the Jacobs Junior High campus, located at 674 Allard Avenue in Eureka. This update is being provided to the Community in response to the interest expressed. 

The Jacobs campus was built in 1956 around the peak of the timber industry, and it served as a junior high school up until 1982. After its closure as a junior high, the facility continued to be used for various functions such as adult education and a continuation high school until the facility was closed following the 2008-09 school year. In anticipation of its closure, Eureka City Schools went through the legal steps of declaring the Jacobs property as surplus in 2008. Other than storage and the soccer fields, the property has been largely unused and the buildings unmaintained since that time. 

Over the last couple of years, the District has taken the legal and procedural steps in order to move forward in abating and demolishing the site, which contained hazardous materials including lead in the paint and asbestos in the ceilings, roofing, and other various insulation products. The buildings were to a point where demolition was the only real option moving forward. Eureka City Schools is pleased to announce the abatement and demolition is scheduled to be complete by mid-February 2021. After completion, the Jacobs campus will be a vacant lot. 

Eureka City Schools has had conversations with four public agencies in the past 10 years relating to the possible sale of the property. Two of these agencies, the City of Eureka and the California Highway Patrol, remain interested in the property and conversations are continuing. 

Please note the soccer fields adjacent to the Jacobs campus will not be included in a future sale and will remain the property of Eureka City Schools and utilized by students at Alice Birney Elementary School.