Newcastle's political leaders want the NSW government to establish protections for the former Wickham School of Arts building.
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Lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes and state MP Tim Crakanthorp have both made renewed calls for the heritage building's preservation.
It comes after its owner, the Hunter and Central Coast Development Corporation, said earlier this week it had "no current plans" to level the site as part of the area's ongoing redevelopment.
Cr Nelmes has written to Premier Gladys Berejiklian and asked her to "end the uncertainty" by committing to a plan for the building's "ongoing protection".
"While I'm pleased the NSW government has advised that they have no plans to demolish the building, it needs to be protected in perpetuity," she said.
Mr Crakanthorp has written his own letter to Planning Minister Rob Stokes, asking him to "urgently implement a plan to protect and reuse" the building, which sits under a local heritage protection order.
"Further, I request that HCCDC begins the process to commence listing the former Wickham School of Arts on the NSW State Heritage Register," Mr Crakanthorp said in the letter.
"No one wants to see a repeat of the Newcastle Store demolition."
The 1882 building has been fenced off and unused for years. It has had various uses in its 138-year history, including as a men's hostel, PCYC and yoga studio.
The building is on a parcel of land HCCDC has previously identified for development. It has engaged heritage experts to investigate how the site might be repurposed.
Mr Crakanthorp told the Herald that "adaptive reuse" in the future would be "fantastic" but the community needed to be consulted first.
"This building shouldn't just be a developer's plaything," he said. "There's a lot of community love for it and the community needs to be a part of its future."
Cr Nelmes concedes development will likely occur around the building even if it is saved, but she wants HCCDC to consider more varied uses than other nearby sites sold for housing.
"Those lots should be used for employment land, not just residential," she said.
"It's very easy to retain that building, I believe, and develop around it."
Complicating the future use of the site even further is the need for a bigger light rail depot should the city's 2.7-kilometre line ever be extended.
The extension study report released earlier this year recommended building a new stabling yard elsewhere and redeveloping the existing depot, which adjoins the School of Arts land, as part of any future extension.
Cr Nelmes said if that was to occur the broader site could offer pedestrian access into Bellevue Street, where vehicles used to cross the heavy rail line before Stewart Avenue was built.
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