EAST PROVIDENCE -- City officials weren't the only ones interested in buying the Meeting Street School property on Waterman Avenue.

The Rhode Island Philharmonic has purchased the seven-acre property for $3.05 million, the Providence-based organization anounced late last week. It had been on the market for $3.2 million.

The city once considered the site for a public-safety complex and a long discussed recreation center.

The Waterman Avenue site will now be home to the "long sought-after" philharmonic music school's central branch and the organization's administrative offices. The change will occur when Meeting Street moves to its new Providence campus later this year.

The Providence school system has allowed the philharmonic to share Nathan Bishop Middle School for its temporary music school during the last few years. Classes held at Nathan Bishop, which had been closed last semester, will be held at Nathanael Greene Middle School, 721 Chalkstone Ave., Providence, for the upcoming year.

"I had heard rumors that they [the philharmonic] were looking at Meeting Street, but I didn't know it was a done deal," Assistant Mayor and Councilwoman Valerie A. Perry said yesterday. "Nothing was cast in stone [among city officials about whether to buy or not]. It was just an idea."

Yet it was an "idea" that JCJ Architecture, which was hired by East Providence to find possible sites for a public-safety complex, thought could work. During its search, it discovered that the large Meeting Street School parcel was on the market.

"To find a seven-acre site in this densely populated city -- and to have it centrally located -- is, based on our history, a rarity," said Peter N. Stevens, president of JCJ, which is based in Hartford, Conn., in early June. "This is up there."

Stevens' presentation showed the location could fit the complex, which would house the Police Department, Fire Department and Municipal Court. He said a recreation center could also fit on the property with the complex.

The city has long been planning to build a 6,000-square-foot multipurpose community and recreation center at a site on Lyons Avenue, near Peirce Field . In a 2004 referendum, voters approved the borrowing of $5 million to build the center, but design changes and other matters have delayed action on the project.

The council asked JCJ to analyze the site, continue to look for other sites, and report back to the top board this month.

Mayor Joseph Larisa Jr. said JCJ submitted a report early, a couple of weeks ago. Larisa said the city's insurance company didn't agree with the idea of a safety complex there because of its proximity to other fire station facilities in the city.

In addition, he said if the city "really, really wanted it," it could still get it despite the philharmonic's purchase and sale agreement.

Although he didn't see that occurring, the mayor said, "You never know."

The school has a 9,000-square-foot building that was built in the 1990s and a laboratory behind the school building, said JCJ in its previous presentation. The parcel also includes woods and a brownfields area.

Said Almon Hall, president of the philharmonic's board of directors, in a news release: "This facility will make it possible to expand our services to the community we already serve and to reach out to an entirely new constituency who will thrive on the many new opportunities we can offer them."

Meeting Street and the philharmonic have also agreed to collaborate on developing music education programs for Meeting Street students. Executive Director David Wax said the philharmonic will maintain its close relationship with the Providence school system as well, such as offering scholarships and other financial aid.

He continued: "But, at last to find a permanent facility is truly exciting. What makes Meeting Street such a perfect fit is that it will meet our immediate needs without major renovations and allow us to expand our current offerings and add more programs to serve our growing community."

The music school became part of the Rhode Island Philharmonic in January of 2000. Through community partnership programs, the school collaborates with other schools, after-school programs, housing authorities, community centers and social-service agencies to provide private instruction in all musical styles. It also has ensembles for participants to join, such as the Junior Providence Singers and the Rhode Island Philharmonic Youth Orchestra.

It serves about 1,500 students annually.

apinaATprojo.com / (401) 277-7465 NOTE: All classes and lessons at the East Bay branch will continue to be held at St. John's Episcopal Church, in Barrington. Classes and lessons at the West Bay branch will continue to be held at St. Luke's Church Parish School, in East Greenwich. Both branches will remain open after the move.

For more information, call (401) 831-3123.