A Texas Historic Landmark, Comfort Independent School District’s first permanent schoolhouse is a three-room limestone school built by German settlers in 1893. In 1904, they added a fourth classroom and hallway, and in 1922, a second story was constructed.

The historic building has served many purposes, most recently as home to the district’s technology department. One hundred years later, in 2020, Pfluger was honored to help the small stone schoolhouse find a new purpose by transforming it as part of a broader effort to modernize campus facilities, into the district’s central office administration building and an open boardroom. To make way for the transition, the technology department moved to another district building, allowing the historic structure to take on its new role.

Preserving the building’s character was a priority in this design-build project with Bartlett Cocke. To retain the building’s historical character, Pfluger kept the exterior intact and worked within the school’s original color scheme. Accessibility improvements were required to make the building safer and more functional, including a limited use/limited application elevator designed to not interfere with the building’s foundation or block windows. Other code-compliance upgrades were made in locations invisible to the public.

The original schoolhouse windows were destroyed over 40 years ago during renovations, and the replacement windows significantly altered the façade. New windows and doors were selected to match the structure’s original design as best as possible. For example, the historic 6-over-6 windows restore the façade to its original design. Out-of-character canopies, fire balconies, fire chutes, and other non-historic additions were also removed. This adaptive reuse ensures the Texas Historic Landmark remains a functional part of the community.

Design: Pfluger Architects
Design Team: Robyn Popa, Lindsey Milligan, Erik Leitner
Contractor: Bartlett Cocke
Photography: courtesy of Pfluger Architects