For more than a century, folks have called Ivywild their home. It started as a small collection of homes on the old Dorr ranch on the south side of Fountain Creek, along smaller Cheyenne Creek. Below is a look at the neighborhood from FlashEarth.

 It was an unincorporated community, much like Falcon, Black Forest, Stratmoor Hills, Security/Widefield, the Broadmoor and others.

 It’s elementary school was founded in 1901 on land the Dorrs donated. At first, students studied in a two-room bungalow. Soon a second bungalow was added.

 Daniel Kennett was born in 1900 and went to Ivywild Elementary School in the bungalows.

 His daughter, Clara, above, attended the “new” Ivywild, an impressive blond brick building opened in 1917 after the bungalows were moved. See if below.

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 One of the bungalows was moved across the street and become the Ivywild Presbyterian Church and the other was moved to Ramona Avenue and now is Edelweiss Restaurant.

Clara graduated sixth grade in 1940 and moved on to junior high. Clara and her husband built a house in Ivywild in 1951 and sent their own two children, Dan and Mary, to the school, which had been expanded again.

But everything changes and that certainly true of Ivywild. And in this case, the change is not all for the better.

Over the years, Ivywild was surrounded by the city of Colorado Springs and eventually annexed in 1980 after a great commotion.

In addition, the Dorr ranchland and pastures gradually were transformed into neighborhoods, commercial properties like the motels along South Nevada Avenue and even into Motor City Drive north of Brookside Street.

In 2005, the neighborhood got a boost when the city transformed the Dorr’s old orchard and horse pasture into a neighborhood park, seen below with its restored Wishing Well.

Here’s  a plaque placed next to the wishing well:

   Now, Ivywild is struggling.

 Ivywild Elementary did not open this fall.

 Seen here last week, it is vacant and up for sale.

 It’s playground empty.

No crossing guards helping children cross busy Tejon Street or Cascade. It was among several schools closed by Colorado Springs School District 11 due to poor enrollment.

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Ivywild suffered another blow when, on Sept. 13, the Ivywild Community Church – formerly the Presbyterian Church, shut its doors after 93 years.

Here’s a look at the church.

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                                                     The closures have Clara Robinson worried. She has watched South Nevada Avenue decay. 

 

 She remembers when it was a family neighborhood where folks like Bob Isaac grew up to become longtime Colorado Springs mayor.

 

The Starsmore family lived there. And part of the Sinton dairy family, as well.

 

Today, it is a haven for drug dealers, prostitution, gang fights and problems associated with a heavy concentration of homeless.

 Same for Brookside Street. She fears it will creep into Ivywild and her little neighborhood.

 ”This was always such a nice, quiet, safe little neighborhood,” she said. “I don’t know what’s going to happen to it now.”‘

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