Could the future of the former Margaret Martin School be a throwback to its past?

Over the last several weeks, a large leak in the water supply line to the former school building has forced the closure of the facility and effectively made the building’s future uncertain.

The cost estimate of more than $60,000 to repair the plumbing has given city leaders pause. Effectively, the city doesn’t have the $60,000 to sink into the building and likely city leaders wouldn’t want to spend it if the money was in the bank.

The building is beautiful and historic, so much so that it is listed as a Mississippi Landmark.

That designation means by law it cannot be demolished, nor should it be.

But the building could — and should — be repaired and reused.

Clearly, the likely highest and best use of the structure is in some capacity as an educational facility.

We’d love it if the Natchez-Adams School District would give serious consideration to reworking the historic structure for use as a new school for the district.

Beyond that, perhaps a preservation school or a school for the arts could be located in the building. It’s a fabulous location, if the building were renovated to provide modern infrastructure to it.

Regardless, the absolute worst thing for the building is for it to simply sit unoccupied and unused. Let’s put our collective heads together and find a solution and then make it happen. The school’s namesake, the late educator Margaret Martin would love the idea of it becoming a center for education again — and so do we.