April 28, 2009
DSBN Selects Elementary School Site
Students and parents can look forward to a state of the art school for students to explore their limitless potential in a pastoral setting now that a site has been chosen for a new public school in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
At their regular meeting on April 28, Trustees at the District School Board of Niagara voted to approve a purchase agreement for an eight-acre plot of land in the Village of Virgil. The property, at the corner of Niagara Stone Road and Line 2, will be home to a two-storey, 18 classroom, JK to 8 elementary school.
The yet to be named facility, scheduled to open in September 2011, will bring together students from Colonel John Butler Public School and Virgil Public School.
“This is certainly an exciting time,” says Kevin Maves, Chair of the Board. “Having found a spacious and appropriate site, the Board can now move forward with the design and ultimately, the construction of a new school that the entire community can be proud of.”
Trustee Lynn Campbell is pleased with the Board’s purchase, noting that the location of the new school respects the viewpoints expressed by the elementary parent community in Niagara-on-the-Lake. “The Board heard from many parents who were passionate about neighbourhood based elementary schooling. This acquisition of this property is the result of an exhaustive search, and will ensure that elementary students have ample room to learn, share and grow.”
DSBN Director of Education Warren Hoshizaki says the new school “will embody the Board’s focus on environmental sustainability.” Should Ministry funding be available the school will be designed and built to the LEEDs™ standard in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System, which incorporates a number of green features, including an orientation to maximize the use of natural light, low-e windows, energy efficient heating and cooling systems and effective measures to control storm water.
The Ministry has announced its Green Schools Pilot Initiative, a joint venture between the Ministries of Education and Research and Innovation. The Board intends to apply for funding to implement green technologies at the school which will help to reduce its environmental footprint, hopes to enlist the support of current school councils, the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake, and MPPs to support this application to make the new school a showcase facility in Niagara.
In addition to the planned environmental features, the new school will also be built to accommodate new and emerging technologies. “More and more, students are interested in using technology to learn. Information is constantly evolving, so schools must be flexible to allow for different forms of technology to be plugged into a system of learning. The features that will be included in the new school will provide students with a vibrant and relevant learning environment for years to come,” says Hoshizaki.
In January, 2008, the Board was allocated $6.6 million dollars from the Ontario Government to help fund the cost of a new elementary school in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Additional monies from the government for the new school were allocated in 2009, increasing the total funded amount to $7.7 million.