The oldest part of the Westhampton School will be preserved as part of the redevelopment of the site. (Courtesy of Bon Secours)
RICHMOND, Va. — After more than six years of fits and starts, the future of the Westhampton School seems to be decided.
Bon Secours announced Friday that Thalhimer Realty Partners has been selected to redevelop the long-vacant, city-owned property at 5800 Patterson Ave into a mixed-use, $53 million project.
To make way for the new buildings, TRP and Bon Secours are planning to raze one of the two buildings on the site, while preserving the older of the two, which was built in 1917.
TRP principals Jason Guillot and Drew Wiltshire presented preliminary plans for the development at a community meeting on Friday.
The Westhampton School will be transformed into a mixed-use development including apartments and commercial office space.
The project will include 129 apartment units, some of which will sit above retail and office space fronting Patterson. Another section of apartments will wrap around a three-level parking deck. Wiltshire said the apartments will be mostly one-bedroom units with some two-bedroom ones.
The 1917 school building will be converted into commercial office space, and TRP plans to create a “cultural plaza” near the northwest corner of Patterson and Libbie avenues.
The development will consist of more than 250,000 square feet in total.
Guillot, who also is redeveloping the former Westhampton Theater site, said the school building project is designed to be pedestrian-oriented.
“We wanted to make sure the project is safe for walking and biking,” Guillot said. “If you walk down Patterson Avenue today, there’s not a lot of activity on the north side of Patterson, in front of the school on the sidewalk. We want to change that.”
