Sanborn Seminary

KINGSTON — A decade and a half after completing their new high school, Sanborn district voters will determine the future of the historic Seminary building, which has lain dormant for years.

A proposed plan, supported by both the school board and the Kingston budget committee, would sell the shuttered Victorian brick building to a local developer specializing in repurposing historic structures. Voters will have their say Tuesday at the polls.

Article 6 of the district’s warrant asks residents to approve selling the land for $200,000. The sale would include the old high school, the science building and parking areas. Not included are the Chase Fields, a technology building and a maintenance shed. The district would also sell the Swasey Gym, but retain the right to lease it for $1 per year.

The potential buyer, Chinburg Properties, is best known for renovating the Newmarket mill complex, as well as several other historic properties including Dover’s Cocheco Mill and the Ellis Factory in Haverhill. These buildings now house apartment units.

The plan was discussed at length during the Jan. 22 school board meeting. District officials outlined the proposal, while voters had a chance to chime in during a public input session. Most of the comments were supportive of the plan, although several attendees asked for clarification about the status of the gym under the proposed agreement.

Should voters approve the sale, executing the restoration would be contingent on Kingston also adopting a 2006 state law via a separate article. Eric Chinburg, who was present at the school board meeting, said he intends to make use of state and federal tax credits. In so doing, he would leverage the seminary’s National Register status, as well as other designations of historical significance. In so doing, the developer would need to be sensitive to architecturally-significant features.

According to a 1979 document compiled for the Historic Preservation Assistance Project, the seminary is “an outstanding polychromatic brick and limestone edifice which has completely retained its integrity of design. … It is architecturally significant to New Hampshire as the only school in the state built in the High Victorian Gothic style.”

The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Additionally, in 2013, the Seminary was listed on the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance’s “Seven to Save” list, which identifies landmark structures that define the state’s architectural heritage.