The Griffin School Credit: Photo by Jana Birchum

It’s all change in Hyde Park, as neighborhood institutions the Griffin School and Trinity United Methodist Church plan big moves. The arts-centric college prep high school will begin the 2010 academic year at its current home on the Perry Mansion campus on Red River, but in January 2011, it will move to the Trinity United Methodist Church complex at 50th Street and Evans Avenue. That congregation, led by the Rev. Sid Hall – along with the Hope Food Pantry and the AHB Community School – will move into the former Hyde Park United Methodist Church at 40th and Speedway. The private Griffin School was already considering options for its long-term future (see “Modern School Lessons: Reading, Writing, and Real Estate,” Oct. 23, 2009) well before the estate owners’ announcement that they’re considering building a luxury hotel there (see “The Spa at Hancock and 41st?,” July 23). Fellow tenant and previous owners the Sri Atma­nanda Memorial School will remain on the Perry estate and could receive a new building as part of the reconstruction. Griffin School Director Adam Wilson said the new site will allow them to expand community outreach efforts, such as summer camps and arts programming. “We’re only moving 10 blocks,” he said, “but it gives us an opportunity to make a new set of neighbors.”

This article appears in August 20 • 2010.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.