Demolition....

....sadly, has begun.
 This structure was built in 1904 of cream city brick and housed St. Mary's Academy--an all girls' High School run by the Sisters of St. Francis. It sits on a beautiful lot full of 150 year old trees, & Lake Michigan is located just across the street. Initially, many of the girls who attended the school boarded there during the year, as they came from all over the state, but as the number of "local" girls attending rose, the option to board was done away with. When the school closed in the early 1990's, the Sisters rented out space in the building to many non-profit groups; however, over the years the rent from the groups couldn't keep pace with the cost of upkeep. The Sisters made the decision to have the building demolished and are building an assisted living center on the site for the 80 or so elderly nuns who need care. I would have loved to have seen the building renovated instead of torn down, but in some peoples' minds, putting up "new" is progress! :((