New City Hall – former Primary School

Concern for education is a common feature of all Greek parents and occupied the refugees from the first moment of their arrival in Kalamaria. In the beginning, the need to survive and secure housing and food was pressing, so there was no possibility of a specific plan of action regarding their children’s schooling. However, once accommodation was secure, and the church had been built, the refugees could turn their attention to establishing a school. The first students of Kalamaria, who had arrived from Pontus, Asia Minor, Eastern Thrace, and southern Russia, were housed in a shack. In 1925 they were transferred to a wooden hut near XEN Kalamaria. The red clay used on the walls gave the building its famous nickname: “the red school”. In 1926 a primary school was founded in Aretsou (at the site of the large complex of Skra Square), and in 1930 the majestic central school of Kalamaria was built next to the Metropolis (today it houses the city hall of Kalamaria). Finally, in 1995, the school moved to its current building at 1 Papagou-Kallidou Street.