Hopkins Submits Plan for Eastern High School The university is seeking to acquire the abandoned Eastern High School building, use it for a variety of purposes and, over time, develop the surrounding 26-acre property. The university was one of two applicants to submit a proposal to the city of Baltimore before a Feb. 27 deadline. The other has proposed a strip shopping center, a use reportedly opposed by some community leaders in the Greater Homewood area. The university's proposal suggests that a possible use for the 150,000-square-foot high school, built in 1939 and closed since 1986, would be to split it roughly in thirds. One part would be for direct university uses, such as continuing education programs. Another would be an "incubator" for small businesses, developed and operated by Dome Corp., a subsidiary of the university and Johns Hopkins Health System. The remaining third would be transformed by the Kennedy Krieger Institute into a high school for special needs students. Eugene S. Sunshine, the university's senior vice president for administration, said other uses might be proposed by the city, the university or others. The university has proposed an initial payment to the city of $100,000, followed by additional payments, up to a projected total of as much as $2.2 million over as long as 20 years. The additional payments would be made only as renovated space or newly constructed buildings on the site are occupied by Hopkins or others. The university's use of space ultimately would be determined on the basis of specific need and financial considerations. Sunshine said Hopkins has long been interested in the site-- on 33rd Street, across from Memorial Stadium and about a mile east of Homewood--for two reasons. "First, the university is outgrowing its present facilities, both at Homewood and on other campuses," he said. "Second, the university is deeply interested in enhancing the vitality of the neighborhoods in which it operates. This proposal can do just that."