School becomes a home

Dickinson's Deb and John Ballard were excited about the opportunity to purchase the Gladstone High School as their dream home.

The school, which opened in 1928, features some 9,000 square feet of classrooms and a carpeted gymnasium. There's plenty of space for a home and a first-class apartment.

But the adventure has come with some surprises.

"I just found out we have to replace the roof," said Deb Ballard during a tour of the building.

The old section of the high school also requires a new heating system.

"It's not all heated yet. We're getting bids for alternative heat sources. We're considering propane but not coal," she said.

The Ballards were married four years ago. Deb is an assistant professor of accounting at Dickinson State University. She's in her fifth year of teaching at the college and is pursuing a doctorate of business administration at Argosy University-Denver. John has taught Spanish at DSU for the last 26 years.

The Ballards learned the school was for sale when they attended the Gladstone citywide rummage sales in the summer of 2006.

The school was previously owned by a man who converted the 1965 science laboratory into a spacious family room, bedroom and kitchen.

"We fell in love with it and bought it," said Deb Ballard.

The high school featured a basketball court on the lower level, and two large classrooms above.

"We have not started any construction inside," she said.

They realized the roof needed repairs after water and debris were discovered on the stairway. The estimated cost to repair the roof is between $35,000-$40,000.

The middle school, which is located next to the high school, is owned by somebody else. It's been converted into apartments.

The Ballards aren't daunted by the task ahead of them.

"I have enjoyed buying and selling homes," she said. "I've always dreamed of having a house with large rooms."

Deb grew up primarily in New Jersey and had a CPA practice on the East Coast.

She described the Gladstone school as a lifetime improvement opportunity. Because of their busy schedules, they have little time for remodeling. They continue to live in Dickinson, but Deb visits the Gladstone home about once a week to water the plants.

The family room is filled with an eclectic collection of furniture -- dining set, sofas, chairs and a bedroom set.

There's even space for a garden on the grounds outside.

"With the building, the yard just looks really small," she said.

After installing the heating system and repairing the roof, the next step is to covert the two large classrooms upstairs into the apartment. Light shines on the hardwood floors through the ceiling-to-floor windows.

"Isn't this incredible!" she said.

The previous owner replaced several of the original windows.

"I envision keeping the windows as original as possible," she said.

One of the classrooms already has living room furniture. The other is intended as "the master bedroom suite."

"It's my first big project. The heat is the first thing and then the roof because it started leaking," she said.

The apartment is intended for Deb's mother, who continues to work in New Jersey. Hopefully, the apartment is completed when she is ready to retire in several years.

Deb also dreams of knocking out a wall between the kitchen and family room. She'd like to install commercial kitchen appliances in that area.

For the time being, the Ballards are content with using the original bathrooms.

As Deb walks through the complex of rooms and hallways, she said, "I love this place. Lots of people want to come out and see it. Last year's Christmas party was here. We had 30 people sitting down to have dinner."

While the roof and heating system are being repaired, Deb is content to water the plants and vacuum once a month.

Deb enjoys living in North Dakota. She loves the sunsets and believes it snows very little as compared to the East Coast.

"I didn't realize how lucky I was until I started teaching here. The students are great. The teachers are great. It's so much better," she said.

The Gladstone High School closed in 1969 with a graduating class of 12 students. A total of 319 students graduated over the years. While the students look back on the school with fond memories, a new chapter is the school's history is about to begin.