EDGEWATER, Colo. — The Edgewater Collective, a nonprofit that helps connect Jefferson County’s Latino community with economic and educational resources, is hoping to purchase the now closed Molholm Elementary School in Lakewood’s Two Creeks neighborhood to turn it into a community center.
Since 2021, Jefferson County Public Schools has closed 21 schools, including Molholm, due to low enrollment.
Joel Newton, Edgewater Collective’s executive director, said the nonprofit found low enrollment was linked to rising rent prices.
“I think who it impacted most was Latino students and families that live in apartments around the Edgewater area around Molholm. As gentrification really pushed families out, and especially during the pandemic, we talked to families and they hoped to move inside the neighborhood, inside Lakewood but couldn't find anything. A lot of them had to move east to Aurora or even out of state, and that was really sad to us, because our families were a key part of the fabric of this community,” Newton said.
The closures left many community members with questions about what would happen to the former school’s properties.
Newton said last summer, the Edgewater Collective started asking neighbors what they would like to see Molholm become.
“I knew that we needed to be ready when the district would come up with an idea to sell the building,” Newton said “And so even back then, I wasn't thinking Edgewater Collective would purchase the building because we don't have millions of dollars in our accounts. But over the last year, talking to Latino families, realizing a real need for a space in this area that felt safe, that had programming that really fit the needs and opportunities in the community, we really began to dream about what could happen with Edgewater Collective and the neighbors and the community in this space.”
Maddie Nichols is long-time Two Creeks neighborhood resident who lives near Molholm.
“I lived here since ‘69 which is 55 plus years. It's very special because it's one of the older areas in Lakewood. It was an old agricultural area, and because of that, it's very diverse,” Nichols said.
Since Molholm closed last year, Nichols said she’s been concerned about how the property and the land it sits on will be used.
“I would like to see this be a community space that would be beneficial to everyone… Joel actually got us together to talk about what we would like,” Nichols said.
Nichols said she attended several Edgewater Collective meetings to express her support for a community center for everyone.
Newton said the center would include amenities for the entire community and critical resources for the Latino community specifically.
“A big part of this is looking at a bilingual early childhood center. A wing of Molholm is already ready for that... We're also looking at ways that our worker cooperatives could use this space,” Newton said. “Molholm is not on the list to sell by Jeffco Public Schools. We don't know when that's going to happen, but we want to be ready for partners when it does come onto the list.”
Kirsten Spielmann with the community group Concerned Citizens for Molholm said one very important resource Molholm offers is green space.
“There’s a big green belt attached to the school, where people walk their dogs and kiddos ride their bikes… I feel like preserving our green belt is important. It is very used, and we need to preserve our green space in underserved communities, because we have less of it and it is beloved,” Spielmann said. “It did feel like this spot has so much potential, and I feel like it is Molholm’s time to really shine.”
Spielmann said she likes the idea of Molholm being able to provide a much-needed space for so many communities.
“As a social worker, I'm a huge advocate for inclusivity and for really supporting the underserved communities that don't have access to a lot of resources,” Spielmann said.
Spielmann said Molholm’s closure was painful.
“I was heartbroken about not having a community hub that was vital. It felt very alive, and it felt like an anchor in the community. And it had a lot of life and a lot of laughter. Kiddos were coming here to learn, and families were very committed to the school,” Spielmann said.
Spielmann said turning Molholm into a center is an opportunity to bring that community hub feeling back to the neighborhood.