Work begins to replace former Salzburg schools with apartments

Demolition and construction work has begun at the former schools on Schwarzstraße in central Salzburg, ORF reported. The building of the educational institute for early childhood education is being demolished, while the former primary school is being stripped out.

Admont Abbey, the developer, plans to build more than 130 privately financed apartments on the site beside the Salzach River. Most will be in the upper price range, with a price cap agreed for only a small share. Plans also include a kindergarten and a cafe in the former school chapel.

The educational institute moved to a new building in Salzburg-Parsch in autumn 2025. The last classes of the private primary school are also based there. Run by the Franciscan Sisters since 1905, the school will close once all its pupils have completed primary school.

The sisters announced in 2019 that they could no longer run the two schools and sold the site to Admont Abbey. After lengthy negotiations, the Archdiocese of Salzburg took over the educational institute and built its new premises with financial support from the federal and state governments. No investor was found to fund a new primary school, and its closure was confirmed in 2025 despite protests from parents, pupils and teachers.