Comment 74495

By H+H (registered) - website | Posted February 16, 2012 at 16:38:52

My apologies if everybody knows this already. One school story really impressed me when I first heard it a few years back. About 20 years ago, Central Public School, which is directly south of City Hall, was scheduled for closure due to declining enrolment. The kids had grown up and left the neighbourhoods surrounding the school. BTW, it's the oldest public elementary school in the province. Instead os shutting it down and worse, demolishing it, a deal was brokered with an insurance company who would sign a 10 year lease (I think) and move their offices onto the second floor of the building. The school, in its reduced size, would operate on the ground floor until such time as the demographics of the neighbourhood changed back to families with kids - as they always do. It worked. The insurance company left and the school is now at capacity again. Nice story. I'm afraid I have only heard this story verbally, so if others have more details, please share them.

Why can't we consider similar ideas with schools such as Delta, Sherwood, etc. I went to Sherwood. It has an incredible theatre and music practice rooms right beside it. You can access the theatre without having to go through the main part of the school. Theatre classes? Music lessons? Performances? Rehearsal space? Other ideas?

There is also a huge gymnasium. After hours sporting events?

I realize there are costs involved in doing these things, but why do we always have to do the thing that is the shortest term, lowest value, poorest environmentally, etc.? Are we to believe that kids will never return to the lower city in large enough numbers to make having even only the ground floor occupied by students and the rest by others?

gcrawford

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