Fort Worth ISD is looking to redevelop one of the schools it closed this spring.
The district released a request for proposals for the purchase and development of Charles E. Nash Elementary, a 99-year-old campus near the Trinity River and downtown that closed May 21 as part of FWISD’s plan to shrink its number of schools.
The request for proposals, released May 29, asks qualified purchasers to submit plans for the property. The district may also consider a ground lease, though the document says FWISD is not obligated to do so.
The document contains an apparent deadline discrepancy. The cover page says proposals are due noon July 24. A later section says proposals are due 2 p.m. July 9.
FWISD spokespeople did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The request for proposals does not include an asking price, minimum bid or independent appraisal. Instead, interested buyers are asked to propose a purchase price or ground lease payment structure.
Tarrant Appraisal District records list the two parcels tied to Nash Elementary at a combined 5.72 acres and nearly $6.9 million in 2026 market value. One parcel includes the newer 28,900-square-foot school building built in 1950.
That value is not the same as a sale appraisal. TAD records are used for tax purposes and may not reflect what the district could receive.
The selected buyer must submit a development plan explaining what it wants to build, how the project would be completed and how trees would be preserved.
The property cannot be used for a charter school, liquor store, check-cashing store, gambling facility, race track, massage parlor, country club or golf course.
Nash Elementary is among several Fort Worth school buildings with the city’s lowest historic designation that delays demolition, according to the district. The designation does not prevent demolition, but it can delay a wrecking permit for up to 180 days while alternatives are explored.
FWISD plans to score proposals on experience, project approach, purchase price or ground lease structure, and financial ability to close.
Nash is one of seven campuses FWISD closed this spring. Its students were reassigned to Rufino Mendoza, Oakhurst and Versia L. Williams elementaries.
The closures are part of a broader facilities plan meant to address declining enrollment, aging buildings and the cost of maintaining more schools than the district says it needs. FWISD leaders previously said the district would need $1.2 billion in repairs over five years.
District officials said closures could save more than $77 million over five years and redirect money toward academics.
But at Nash, the closure carried a different kind of cost.
Families, alumni and staff described the school as a neighborhood anchor. In late April, Principal Amber Jarden told families at the school’s final celebration that Nash had built a culture of safety, care and love.
“These walls hold stories of growth, perseverance, joy and community,” Jarden said at the time. “Stories that will always be part of Fort Worth.”
The school’s future will return to the board of managers for a decision this fall.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.
Disclosure: FWISD manager Pete Geren leads the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report. FWISD manager Laurie George is a member of the Report’s reader advisory council. News decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org/2026/06/26/fwisd-seeks-buyer-to-redevelop-closed-charles-e-nash-elementary-campus/”>article</a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https://fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.<img src=”https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”>
<img id=”republication-tracker-tool-source” src=”https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=632691&ga4=2820184429″ style=”width:1px;height:1px;”><script> PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: “https://fortworthreport.org/2026/06/26/fwisd-seeks-buyer-to-redevelop-closed-charles-e-nash-elementary-campus/”, urlref: window.location.href }); } } </script> <script id=”parsely-cfg” src=”//cdn.parsely.com/keys/fortworthreport.org/p.js”></script>