St. Albert’s Catholic school board wants a new school too.
A week after the Protestant board decided to take its long-time demand for a new school directly to Premier Ed Stelmach, the Catholic board voiced its own desire for a new school in St. Albert’s northeast quadrant.
“What’s a growth area for their board is also a growth area for our board,” said Catholic chair Dave Caron at the board’s public meeting Monday evening.
“I just wanted to publicly convey our sense of want as well.”
Landrex Developers is trying to get approval to build homes in Erin Ridge North, an annexed area in northeast St. Albert. The Protestant district has been asking for a new school in that general area for at least five years, with the last two years focused on a P3 partnership with Landrex.
The Catholic board added a new K-to-9 school to its capital priority list about two years ago. The project is the third priority behind modernizations to St. Albert High and V.J. Maloney. The board has a potential school site in the Oakmont neighbourhood but would finalize a location with the city, Caron said.
The Catholic board says that Neil M. Ross elementary, which serves the northeast corner, is at capacity now and projected to grow by 14 per cent by 2013. The school already has 12 portables.
St. Albert MLA Ken Allred was surprised to hear the Catholic board wants a new school.
“We met about a month ago and that wasn’t part of the discussion,” Allred said.
The province currently has 32 new schools in the works in Edmonton, Calgary, Okotoks, Langdon, Spruce Grove and Sherwood Park. The last Catholic school built in St. Albert was J.J. Nearing in 1998. The last Protestant school was Muriel Martin in 1991.
Allred feels St. Albert may be due for a new school but there are a number of factors working against local jurisdictions — stagnant enrolment, residential growth that’s lagging behind other areas and in the Catholics’ case, a project that’s listed as a third priority.
“It makes for a difficult case,” Allred said. “They certainly should get their licks in as early as possible because it’s a slow process, particularly now when the fiscal restraints are on.”
The Catholic board will begin its campaign by approaching local MLAs.
Alberta Education spokesperson Kathy Telfer said the department isn’t expecting any new capital dollars in next year’s budget, and when money does become available the highest growth areas will have priority.
