Re-imagining Closed School Sites: The Start of a Process

We aim to transition spaces so they continue to serve the community

TRISHA ESTABROOKS, EPSB TRUSTEE WARD D

Mount Royal School, now closed. Photo: Trisha Estabrooks.

In recent years, the school communities near 118 Avenue have seen a number of changes. In the spring of 2017, Rundle, R.J. Scott and Lawson schools were closed and a new K-9 school, Ivor Dent, opened in the fall of that same year. In spring 2020, Montrose and Mount Royal schools were closed and the newly renovated and expanded Highlands K-9 school opened.

The decision to build replacement schools was ultimately a good decision, in my opinion, for kids and their families. Opening Ivor Dent and Highlands K-9 schools gave students access to newer facilities and additional programming. It also showed the School Board’s commitment to investing in schools in older neighbourhoods, knowing that one component to a thriving neighbourhood is a local community school.

As with every decision, though, there are also consequences. The opening of two K-9 schools meant that a number of our older school buildings would be empty and available to lease. Through my time serving as your School Board Trustee, I have encouraged community groups, sports teams, faith organizations and anyone interested in leasing space within the closed schools to reach out. The reality is that some of the empty school space has been well used and other spaces not used at all.

The other reality is that it costs the school division tens of thousands of dollars to operate these buildings each year, in addition to significant deferred maintenance costs, or the work that needs to be done to keep a school building in ideal condition. For example, the deferred maintenance cost at Mount Royal school is $4 million. Because these buildings are not being used as schools, the division does not receive any funding from the provincial government to operate or maintain them.

Fast forward to today. Recently, the Board of Trustees declared six schools surplus. This means that the school division no longer has a need for the following buildings: Montrose, Mount Royal, R.J. Scott, Rundle, Lawton, R.J. Scott and Queen Mary Park schools. The cost to operate and maintain these buildings outweighs any potential revenue that might be received by renting these schools to the public. Declaring the sites surplus will save the division money and, if the sites are sold, will create revenue the division can use toward other initiatives. At the forefront of this decision, for me as one trustee, is the fact that these buildings and the land on which they are on, could and should be used for other purposes.

I have had some folks reach out and ask, “But wait a minute, isn’t Edmonton Public running out of space, shouldn’t we reopen the closed schools?” It’s a good question as the space crunch within EPSB is real. The problem is the area of the city where we need the space the most is not where our empty schools are located. Additionally, the cost to reopen the schools is significant and given the state of some of these buildings, not worth the investment.

Schools are often situated on beautiful pieces of land with lots of green space, close to transit and nestled within our communities. Once that building no longer serves as a school, we need to find ways to transition that space into one that serves the community in a different way. Now that the decision has been made to surplus these sites, the school division must follow a process.

First, the Government of Alberta will review the site and determine if there are other uses for it. If so, the government may acquire the property. If the Government of Alberta decides not to acquire the property, the Division’s Joint Use Agreement (JUA) partners—Edmonton Catholic School Division, Conseil scolaire Centre-Nord and the City of Edmonton—have the first right-to-purchase. If neither the province nor a JUA partner express an interest in the property, the division can then attempt to sell the property on the open real estate market.

The process is now underway for closed schools in our neighbourhood to undergo a change. And while change can be daunting at times, it can also bring unexpected benefits and the potential for great things for the community.

I look forward to supporting community through the next phase of re-imagining these buildings.

Please reach out if you have questions about this or anything else to do with Edmonton Public Schools and public education: trustee.trisha.estabrooks@epsb.ca