The old Carrollton courthouse, photographed during an Audubon Charter School event in 2012. (UptownMessenger.com file)
Students at Tulane and LSU will team up to find a new use for the old Carrollton Courthouse, officials announced Wednesday.
The project, slated to start this month, is driven by students with the Tulane School of Architecture and the Robert Reich School of Landscape Architecture at LSU. The study follows a recent forum by residents dedicated to saving the building and keeping it open for public use.
Constructed in 1855, the building on 701 S. Carrollton Ave. was recently named one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
It served as seat of government for Jefferson Parish until the City of Carrollton was annexed by New Orleans in 1874. The building has been vacant since 2013, but in recent years had housed several schools, including Audubon Charter School.
For more information about the project, visit Tulane’s website.
The building was designed by Henry Howard(1818-1884) Irish immigrant and architect who came to the city in th 1830’s. Some his designs: the Pontalba Bldgs, plantation homes: Windsor, Madewood, Nottoway, Bellegrove. In the city, the Darcy house at Prytania/Coliseum/2nd St is still extant.
The real issue for saving the Courthouse seems to be one of economics and public interest and not one of design or landscaping.