Anchorage mayor's office wants closed Abbott Loop Elementary demolished, school officials say

Anchorage School District officials told the school board at a work session Tuesday that the mayor's office believes the closed Abbott Loop Elementary should be demolished. Chief Operating Officer James Anderson said the mayor's office has not made a final decision and that emails about demolishing or repurposing the building were still circulating.

Superintendent Jharrett Bryantt described a package that also covers Campbell STEM Elementary and the Westpark parcel, adding that "the mayor has committed that all proceeds would come to ASD." The municipality's vision is to redevelop the Abbott Loop land for housing, he said, "and in exchange we would provide Westpark."

A school board member asked whether the board could order an excess building demolished before handing it back to the city. Anderson said no. "The board doesn't determine disposition," he said. He added that the mayor's office cited high deferred maintenance and that "it doesn't have a fire suppression system." "The path that we have discussed with the mayor's team was demolition in spring," Anderson said.

While the city decides what happens to the building, the board has a separate role in paying for demolition. According to the September 2026 board recap, demolition would require board authorization to spend $4 million left from a prior bond meant for a fire suppression system. The work could happen in spring 2027, after snowmelt. In December 2025, the board voted 6-1 to remove Abbott Loop demolition from the third year of its capital plan.

Campbell is on a different track. "There's been no indication that that building would be demoed at all," Anderson said. The city has held community meetings on reusing it.

The Anchorage Assembly has a resolution of intent before it to sell the 53.8-acre Westpark site for housing, with net proceeds going to the district to the maximum extent allowable. The resolution is policy intent, not a binding sale, and any formal disposal would require separate ordinances and public hearings. District officials said the Assembly may ask for a special work session on the three properties.