Carr Central Apartments held its ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, marking the completion of the former school’s transformation from a building vacant since 1979 to an apartment complex.

Brownstone Construction oversaw the project of the multi-family unit, which will house low-income residents at an affordable price using the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit in section 42 of the IRS code.

“There is an income bracket, so there’s some criteria you have to go through,” Brownstone Construction vice president Jeremy Mears said. “It’s about 60 percent of what the average median income is.”

Residents who qualify will be able to enjoy the new apartments, which range from one to three bedrooms within the three stories of the old school. Washer and driers come included with each apartment, and the original trusses of Carr Central High School still run through some of the third-floor units. The first floor houses a clubhouse with offices and meeting space, and the old Carr Central auditorium has been turned into a private gym.

The project took 13 months to complete and will provide Vicksburg with a posh new affordable apartment complex centered in the heart of the city.

“When I see what this school has turned into, it’s absolutely amazing,” South Ward Alderman Michael Mayfield said. “When I walked in there this morning, I just simply could not believe what has been so diligently put together for this city.”

Mayfield, who helped initiate the renovation project, accompanied Mears and Mayor George Flaggs Jr. at the ribbon cutting on the front steps of the complex.

“We’re proud. This is one of the most exciting days we’ve had in Vicksburg, and yet, there’s more to come,” Flaggs said.

“What I say most of the time when we have a business like this start, we say that it’s awesome. But because we took one of our most historic pieces of property, our most valued piece of property in the heart of the city, we say that this is awesome, awesome, awesome.”

Carr closed in 1979 after it functioned as a junior high for 21 years. It had served as Carr Central High School from 1932 to 1958, when H.V. Cooper High School opened.