As Catholic schools close, L.A. Archdiocese finds new uses for former Eastside campuses

Gloria E. Morales looks at the former St. Francis of Assisi School building on Maltman Avenue near Sunset Boulevard and sees stillness.

“It’s empty. It’s dormant,” she said.

Morales, a long-time parishioner, would like to see the school reopen or the building repurposed to benefit the community.

St. Francis is one of a handful of Eastside Catholic schools that have closed in recent years because of declining enrollment. Across the country, plans have emerged to turn former Catholic schools into everything from apartments in Chicago to a boutique hotel in Denver. But there are no such plans in the works for any of the shuttered Eastside campuses.