Moline High School Lofts
The Opportunity
A vacant former high school was both a redevelopment problem and a distinctive architectural asset. Reusing it for housing could preserve civic history while bringing residents and investment back to the area.
The Challenge
Converting an institutional school building into apartments meant adapting large, specialized spaces to residential use while preserving the building’s identity and assembling a feasible mixed-income capital structure.
The Approach
Make the building’s history part of the resident experience, combining affordable and market-rate apartments and accessibility-focused units with community amenities.
The Result
The former high school became 60 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments at affordable and market rents, including units for residents with physical disabilities, plus shared community amenities.
Why It Matters
Obsolete civic buildings can become productive community assets without erasing the history that made them meaningful in the first place.