Proposed closures could make way for new school

Alycia Douglass
Proposed closures could make way for new school
Tonight’s school board meeting is set to start at 6:30 p.m. in Kemptville. (Alycia Douglass/TC Media)

CORNWALL, Ontario – Trustees will make their final decision tonight regarding the proposed closures of a dozen Eastern Ontario Schools. 

The meeting is set to take place tonight in Kempville.

New documents were recently released, underlining the cost-efficiency of replacing Cornwall Collegiate and Vocational School (CCVS) and St. Lawrence Secondary School (SLSS) to make way for a new, larger school.

Restoration of both schools would cost an estimated $46,911,465, while the projected school would cost just over $41 million. The Ontario government board would be willing to provide full funding for a new school rather than draining the existing schools’ maintenance budget, making more funds available for transportation, programming, and educational supports.

While CCVS can accommodate 1,266 students, and SLSS has a capacity just over half of that at 774, the proposed new school would be capable of holding an estimated 1,400 students.

In order to get rid an approximate 10,000 vacant classrooms and take full advantage of funding, the board proposed a new plan. The plan, however is only expected to remove a total of 2,358 spaces across the board.

If the Ministry of Education was to provide funding for a new Cornwall grade 7-12 school, both CCVS and SLSS would close under the Category 3 School Closures.

School Board Efficiencies and Modernization (SBEM) has been on the board’s radar since 2015-16, and phased in over three years. On September 1, 2017, new project-related funding calculations will be fully implemented.

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