Port Royal Elementary School kept open; historic community preserved

In early August, The Beaufort (SC) County School Board voted to keep Port Royal Elementary School (PRES) open after it faced threats of closure. The decision was reached after a campaign spearheaded by CNU-Beaufort/Carolinas to preserve the 100-year-old school. Historic schools such as PRES are an important part of the fabric of traditional neighborhoods. In the mid-1990s, Dover Kohl’s Port Royal Master Plan focused on the revival of PRES and helped foster prosperity for both the school and Old Town. The town was eventually designated one of the first Successes of the New Urbanism by CNU.

PRES has set an example to which other localities inspire, unwittingly becoming a national case study in small town planning, historic preservation, and reinvestment for healthy neighborhoods. Without a doubt, closing the school would have been a blow to both historic Port Royal and the global movement to develop greener, prosperous, and resilient communities.

CNU remains committed to reforming school campus design to promote sustainability and accessibility in the community. Such reform not only minimizes unnecessary driving, but also saves energy and encourages strong bonds between the school and community members. Even more, we seek to reestablish the role of the school as a work of civic architecture that communicates the importance society places on education. For a century, PRES has exemplified this philosophy. Through our advocacy, we hope that the school will continue to do so for centuries to come.