LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- The Lakewood City Schools recently announced a unique plan to preserve its past with an eye on the future.

Recently, the Board of Education approved a major renovation of the former Taft Elementary School building, which closed in 2008, that when finished will expand district and community programming.

The project is also tied to the recent sale of the Board of Education properties on Warren Road to Liberty Development Company.

Once completed, the 35,000-square-foot Taft Elementary School building, which opened in 1927 and was expanded in 1957 and 1970, will also provide a new home for the Central Office staff.

Lakewood Board of Education President Edward Favre said the project is consistent with several district needs and goals.

"First, it relocates the Central Office," Favre said. "Second, it's a major step toward our goal of moving forward with the all-day Pre-K program. And it facilitates our partnership with the University of Akron and Cuyahoga Community College, and possible collaborations with others."

The current plan calls for the Central Office staff to move into its new home in January 2020 with preschool programming starting for the 2020-2021 school year.

"We're going to be manipulating some spaces," Lakewood City Schools Superintendent Michael J. Barnes said. "The building infrastructure is in great shape according to a review from an architect firm. It's not going to be as daunting as one would imagine for a building that was built in 1927."

As for the cost of the Taft Elementary School reconfiguration, Barnes said it hasn't been finalized, but he expects the total to be more than $1 million.

"We will not have to go to the taxpayers and ask them for money to do this," Barnes said. "We will be renting space at Taft and allocating those resources to cover the investment to preserve another piece of the history of Lakewood and turn it into a highly useful space that will benefit our children and our community."