Before Cooley High School began demolition it stood as a symbol of pride for many alumni, but also as a failure of the struggling district, from when Cooley closed in 2010. For years Cooley stood scrapped and vandalized from years of neglect. However through the decay and damage suffered, Cooley remained a iconic school. While plans originally saw to save a large part of the building in 2025, the district announced in early June 2026 that the full school would be demolished. After serve community push back, superintendent Dr. Vitti of DPSCD announced a meeting last minute for alumni and community members to attend on June 10th at Renaissance High School. Abandoned Commercial Detroit was in attendance and noted that many alumni were in disbelief about the shear “coverup” and not getting alumni feedback on the parts of the school that would be saved. Many also felt it was almost like talking to a wall about the talks of saving their school. Leading up to the demolition for years various buyers and re-developers wanted to buy Cooley and turn it into a community space. However the district refused again and again to sell the building, most recently Chet Pitts (Class of 2001 at Cooley) offered to buy the school in full and showed funds to be able to redevelop it, with a full plan, and blueprints. Again the district refused the offer and stood on their plans of full demolition and redevelopment into the districts version of a athletic complex for Cody High School, which was a very hard point for the alumni of Cooley to accept for very fair reasons, with the distinct rivalry between the Cooley Cardinals and the Cody Comets. Following the meeting Chet Pitts began a lawsuit against the district.
Statement on Cooley Demolition from Chet M. Pitts (Class of 2001) 8/9/26
Statement Regarding the Demolition of Cooley High School
My position is simple: if Detroit Public Schools Community District followed every required rule, then they should have no problem proving it. Cooley High School was not just another vacant building. It was a historic public institution that belonged to generations of Detroiters, and decisions of this magnitude should come with complete transparency, accountability, and documentation. I have taken these concerns to court because serious questions remain regarding the process surrounding Cooley's demolition, including the use of federal grant funds, required procedures, public accountability, community involvement, approvals, procurement, and compliance with other applicable requirements. The burden should not be on the community to simply trust that everything was done correctly. Show us the records. If DPSCD properly complied with every applicable federal funding requirement, public-meeting requirement, procurement procedure, community-engagement obligation, and approval process, then produce the documents demonstrating that compliance.
-Produce the notices.
-Produce the meeting records.
-Produce the approvals.
-Produce the grant requirements and documentation showing they were followed.
-Produce the contracts, bids, evaluations, and authorization records.
-Produce the documentation showing when, where, and how the community was given a meaningful opportunity to participate before the decision became irreversible.
If everything was done properly, the records should prove it. What concerns me most is that demolition continues while these questions remain unresolved. Once a historic building is destroyed, no court order, public apology, or later explanation can put it back together.
CALL TO ACTION
I am calling on Cooley alumni, Detroit residents, neighborhood organizations, preservation advocates, elected officials, journalists, community leaders, and taxpayers to demand transparency.
-Ask questions.
-Request the records.
-Contact your elected representatives.
-Document what is happening.
-Speak publicly.
-Attend meetings.
-Share information.
And demand that every public dollar and every decision involving Cooley be fully accounted for. This is no longer only about saving a building, this is about whether public institutions can make irreversible decisions involving public property and public money without being required to fully demonstrate that the proper process was followed. If DPSCD followed the law and every applicable requirement, then release the evidence and let the public see it. If mistakes were made, the public deserves to know. If requirements were ignored, the public deserves accountability. And until these questions are fully answered, we should not stop asking them.
-Demand the Records.
-Demand Transparency.
-Demand Accountability.
-Protect What Remains of Cooley.
— Chet M. Pitts
Auditorium before demolition
Auditorium before demolition
Auditorium before demolition
Gymnasium before demolition
Gymnasium before demolition
Library before demolition
Library before demolition
Hallway in Cooley before demolition
Hallway in Cooley before demolition
ROTC Shooting range before demolition
June 7th
In the days after the announcement a fence went up around the school however no demolition work had began on the school. Security was on site, but was not 24/7 like it would be later on in the demolition. Over the following days, hundreds of Cooley alumni paid their respects to a school that shaped them as a person.
Front of the school just days before work began on demolishing the 98 year old school
Other half of Cooley just before Demolition
Side entrance of Cooley next to Cooley North
That same entrance
One of the main entrances to the school, later this same entrance would be saved to be used on the new athletic complex
During this time before demolition the bell towers still remain intact and untouched
The infamous "Western Entrance"
Classrooms near western entrance
The fields of Cooley remained intact until the demolition started
A unmarked car alongside security sit in the lot of Cooley behind the demo fence
It is possible this unmarked car was a DPS Police car
Cooley north just days before demolition efforts
June 12th
In the days following the June 10th meeting, the demolition crew began removing accents off the building to preserve them for the new athletic field. Also around this time the school was put into a 24/7 armed security presence, after a group of “urban explorers” that were known for their more edgy take on urban exploring, took down a section of the fence and entered into the school via the “western entrance” (Abandoned Commercial Detroit will not name drop the group of individuals responsible for the break in) the following day Detroit Public Schools Community District spokeswoman Chrystal Wilson said intruders broke down a large section of the fence protecting the building and a covering protecting the entrance of the long vacant school was destroyed. While the final statement was untrue, the fence was destroyed to gain entry, prompting the district to put up the 24/7 security on site. Most notably work on removing the bell towers began, alongside accent marks and the front facade being saved.
Cooley Athletic field the school in the same shot
By this time work had began on the front side in removing the bell towers however the backside looked the same as it had for years
Cooley North on June 12th, 2026
Crews start removing accent marks on the tops of the building for the new athletic complex
Pathway of Cooley in the front of the school
Note the front facade has been removed most of the way
Other half of the school
Scaffolding lines one of the bell towers
Removal of the bell towers begins
August 4th
After about a month of prep work, the first section of the school was demolished being the gymnasium and pool sections. It came as a shock for many, and was the one of the final nails in the coffin for many, however Chet Pitts continued his fight to save “what was left of the school”.
The Gymnasium is the first section to be demolished
The demo work as seen from the lauder st side near to Cooley north
Demo work equipment
Security remains in place and ready to take on trespassers and vandals
The bell towers have both been removed
A section in the middle has also been removed
Just a month ago the school looked as it always had, now many sections have been removed
Front of the school seen from the church across the street
Many classroom windows have had their boards removed for asbestos abatement which was going on inside the building on this day
The western entrance still remains
More accents have been removed from the top
Western entrance
Side of Cooley as seen from Marlowe st
Lines of classrooms remain open to the elements just days before their turn comes to meet the wrecking ball
Accent details on top of the western entrance
Gymnasium demolition work
What remained of Cooley on this day
August 5th
Work from the previous day had seen the reminder of the face to be demolished as the day prior the gym section had been left unfinished requiring a clean up on this day.
While not much had changed, the area has been cleaned up my in the gymnasium section from the previous day
Gymnasium demo work
The School as seen from Coyle st.
Note the work on the athletic field has began alongside the demo work all remains of the Cooley Athletic field have been removed off site and scrapped and redeveloped
Cooley north side of Cooley on August 5th, 2026
Windows have had their boards removed on the side near Cooley North (Note work has not began on Cooley North)
That same side
that same side
August 6th
August 6th was a proper clean up day, with many asbestos abatement crews working in the front sections of the school removing mainly tiles. While in the back debris was moved offsite, as bricks were taken off the building to be used directly on the new athletic field. All boards of the school had been removed allowing a unique view inside the school into the library towards the front of the school.
August 6th served more as a clean up day with no major work being done
Inside the building asbestos abatement work is in full swing as workers remove floor tiles
Front of the school on August 6th, 2026
The library boards have been removed allowing a very unique view from the street, if you look closely you can see the iconic Cooley wood staircase in the library
Cooley loses more and more of its character as demolition progresses
One of the side entrances to Cooley, next to Cooley North
Cooley North on August 6th, 2026
More work on the removal of accent marks is still in full swing
More work on the removal of accent marks is still in full swing (this crew in particular is salvaging bricks from the side of the building, for the new athletic complex)
Crews clean up the gymnasium demo work from the last two days
Crews clean up the gymnasium demo work from the last two days
Crews clean up the gymnasium demo work from the last two days
Crews clean up the gymnasium demo work from the last two days
The western entrance remains
The accent marks remain on the Western Entrance
The school as seen on August 6th, 2026
August 7th and 8th
August 7th marked a very big turning point in the saving of Cooley as classroom sections of the school were torn into alongside the removal of the western entrance. Cooley north also had holes torn into it as it began its own asbestos abatement.
On August 7th, 2026 the Western Entrance was demolished
Classrooms remain with no exterior walls
The gymnasium has been removed in full
Side classrooms next to Western Entrance remain
that same side
that same side
Demo work with a lone staircase remaining
The next day with daytime shots (No work this day because of the weekend)
The western entrance is removed but the classrooms next to it remain
The western entrance is removed but the classrooms next to it remain
The western entrance is removed but the classrooms next to it remain
Side of once gymnasium as seen on August 8th
The school as seen on August 8th, 2026
Demo work as seen on August 8th
Demo work as seen on August 8th
On August 7th demo work begins on Cooley North (taken august 8th)
On August 7th demo work begins on Cooley North (taken august 8th)
August 10th
August 10th marked probably the most important turning point of the demolition, when the western entrance was demolished more following north towards the auditorium which would be demolished later in the day. While the auditorium was not supposed to be demolished that day due to asbestos on the ceiling of the space requiring asbestos abatement, a heavy equipment operator later confirmed to Abandoned Commercial Detroit that the space “just collapsed” and it wasn’t the intention.
I knew my shot I had wanted via a drone was not going to happen if I waited for my drone to be deliver the coming Friday, so I bought a emergency drone in the meantime, while the footage of the drone isn’t the best it was my first time using one and the images came out ok at best (No better then a phone camera), however later in the drone shots we will switch to the official one coming Friday.
August 10th drone shots
August 11th
August 11th saw a large part of the classroom wing next to the western entrance get demolished. This day was some of the closest the excavators would come to the fence. The tops of the bell towers also magically appeared in the front of the school.
August 11th drone shots
As I got more comfortable with the drone I flew it very close to inside the building allowing for some once in a lifetime shots of the school in its remaining condition.
August 12th
The demolition efforts have finally made their way to the front of the building, that front facade plan from 2025 will not be saved after all, as the district stated last minute in June 2026. Bricks from the right side of the building are pulled off days before the wrecking ball will hit the remaining section. Also demolition work begins properly on Cooley North.
