BEVERLY — The city may not be building a new middle school, but there's no reason why Briscoe can't get a makeover of its own.
Kids, parents and community members were outside yesterday raking the lawn, picking up trash and planting bulbs to get ready for a major landscaping overhaul that will spruce up the lawn of the 86-year-old building.
In May, they'll be planting juniper shrubs and Japanese holly bushes, chokecherries and dogwoods — and a row of American elm trees, to be donated by the elementary schools and families.
The work is being done by volunteers and through donations, said Lou Ann Faria, who helped spearhead the movement as the advisor for the Briscoe Green Team club (formerly Build a Better Briscoe).
"It came up as a sort of 'by the way' at a PTO meeting," she said. "It just snowballed really."
Parent Kathy Whitehair said over the last year, people have been talking about improving the grounds to show off the classical features of the school.
"We want it to really highlight the architecture of the beautiful building," Whitehair said.
About 50 people, many of them kids, did their part cleaning the grounds and said they were excited for May 16, when everything will be planted.
Eighth-grader Jessica Wahl said she couldn't wait to see it in bloom.
"It will make the school look better," she said. "With the flowers, it will look a lot nicer."
Although the school is aging and in need of repair, Whitehair said she wants to make it clear that, despite a lack of funding, people are still proud of it.
"From the outside, it may appear it's not well cared for," Whitehair said. "But we know better."
She's been working with gardener Caryn Gallagher and the city to pinpoint which plants would grow best where and has gone back to the original design plans from 1923 to craft a landscaping plan that closely mirrors what was proposed at the time.
"Instead of a hodgepodge of donated plants that don't make any sense, we're all about using the proper, attractive plants that will last over time," she said.
The organizers also brought new planters for the front of the building, which they eventually hope to replace with granite ones. They'd also like to bring in benches, buy more attractive trash cans, install better bike racks and do anything else that comes up to make the outside look more inviting.
If the enthusiasm continues, maybe they'll eventually start making repairs to the inside, she said.
"The more we talk about it, the more community members are saying 'We'd like to help with that, we'll roll up our sleeves,'" she said. "It's just grown in scope. We don't know what we'll be able to achieve."
Staff writer Cate Lecuyer can be reached at clecuyer@salemnews.com.
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