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By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

many projects sought after

School divisions submit capital priority lists to province

Mar 29, 2023 | 1:00 PM

School divisions across Alberta are required to submit their three-year capital priority lists to the provincial government by March 31.

Submissions don’t guarantee anything will be funded, nor that they’ll necessarily be funded in the order the divisions prioritize them.

Red Deer Public Schools

1. Modernization with addition at Hunting Hills
*building envelope, mechanical, electrical, and functional

2. New Grade 6-8 school in northeast Red Deer
*capacity of 600 required

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3. Modernization of Gateway Christian School
*architectural, mechanical, electrical, and functional

4. Modernization of Oriole Park Elementary School
*full mechanical and electrical, architectural, and functional

5. Modernization of Glendale School
*CTS upgrade, partial mechanical, electrical, and functional

6. The modernization of Eastview Middle School
*architectural, mechanical, electrical, and functional

7. New Grade 9-12 High School, northeast Red Deer
1000 spaces

Chinook’s Edge School Division

1. A new grade 10-12 high school in Sylvan Lake
*975 student capacity; projecting École H. J. Cody will be over 100% capacity in less than two years

2. Modernization of Innisfail High School
*40 years since last modernization

3. A new elementary school in Olds
*400 student capacity

4. A new K-8 school for Liberty Landing (in Gasoline Alley)
*500 student capacity

5. A new middle school in Carstairs or the modernization of Hugh Sutherland School
*500 student capacity; project would also see demolition of portions of Hugh Sutherland School that were built in 1953 and 1958

Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools

1. A new K-5 school in Blackfalds
*St. Gregory the Great, which opened in 2017, started with 130 more students than anticipated, and now is already at 115% capacity. A new school is needed for Sept. 2026 or earlier.

2. A new 9-12 school in Sylvan Lake
*The idea of a partnership with the local public school board has been broached. A potential school would have at least 325 students, with a possible post-secondary partner which would allow the school to offer certain courses.

3. A new 9-12 school in Blackfalds
*A 500 capacity school will be required to alleviate growth in high school-aged students currently going into Red Deer. The current K-9 school in town is overfull with significant growth anticipated.

4. A new K-5 school in Red Deer
*A 500 capacity school will be required for Sept. 2030 to alleviate growth. Father Henri Voisin School is at full build out with final modular classrooms occupied in the 2018-19 school year. Current utilization for schools in the city stands at 89% (including St. Joseph High School at 72%) and is expected to continue to increase.

Wildrose Public Schools

1. Right-size village of Breton schools
*Major modernization of Breton High School, and reconfiguration of that school into a K-12; meantime, close and demolish Breton Elementary, which was built in 1952 with additions and renovations in 1966, 1981, 1995 and 2004; Breton High, currently 7-12, is only 39 per cent utilized and performing this reconfiguration would boost that to 83%.

2. Right-size town of Rocky Mountain House schools
*New right-sized replacement school to replace both Ecole Rocky Elementary and Lochearn Elementary; Rocky Elementary has a utilization rate of only 43%, Lochearn Elementary has a utilization rate of 77%; thus the objective is build one new school which would have at least 90% utilization; this would include demolishing both schools with the replacement to go where Lochearn is currently.

3. Major modernization of Frank Maddock High School in Drayton Valley
*Enrolment in 2018-19: 527… is now projected to be 454 in 2023-24; this building is 50-years-old and has low utilization at just 58%; the division also says it is too segregated which does not permit collaboration; as well, there are obsolete spaces and barrier-free challenges.

Wolf Creek Public Schools

1. Iron Ridge Elementary Campus
*500 capacity K-3 replacement facility, including four modulars; demolish existing school, relocate playground and relocate four modulars to new school

2. Ecole J.S. McCormick School
*550 capacity K-3 replacement facility; demolish existing school, relocate playground and relocate modulars to new school

Clearview Public Schools

1. Modernization of Wm. E. Hay Stettler Secondary Campus – junior high section

Clearview has an ongoing value scoping process, the division says