Raise the Hammer

Prince Philip will close its doors at the end of the next school year.

With a 6-5 vote, public school board trustees supported shuttering the Ainslie Wood elementary school in June 2013.

Prince Philip students will be shuffled to G.R. Allan elementary school in Westdale the following September.

“I believe this is the right opportunity, the right time to do this,” said trustee Jessica Brennan, who backed the closure.

“I worry that if we keep the status quo, these three schools will continue to suffer,” added board chair Tim Simmons.

The decision was met with derision from members of the Ainslie Wood and Westdale communities who attended Monday's meeting. Shouts of “shame” could be heard throughout the boardroom when the vote was announced.

Many parents and community members have opposed the closure since the outset of the accommodation review last April since, they have argued, it will lead to overcrowding at G.R. Allan as well as the loss of a walkable school and community hub.

Several trustees also spoke out against the closure, including Todd White, who said getting rid of Prince Philip will “gut the community.”

“That is something I am not prepared to do,” he added.

Trustees Lillian Orban and Karen Turkstra, meanwhile, raised concerns over Prince Philip students having to cross busy Main Street West to get to G.R. Allan.

“We're asking elementary students, not secondary students, to cross five or eight lanes of traffic,” Turkstra said.

“It's the busiest street in Hamilton.”

Though the outlook was bleak for Prince Philip, both G.R. Allan and Dalewood Middle School will benefit from $5.8 million in capital improvements in connection with the closure.

Some of the projects include the installation of elevators, additional classroom space, a new gym for G.R. Allan and accessible washrooms.

~

http://www.thespec.com/news/local/article/706662--prince-philip-school-to-close