The St. Clair Catholic District School Board voted in favour of the location of a new Catholic elementary school for north Chatham Aug. 29.
The school will be built at 801 McNaughton Ave., W., on property which the board has owned since the 1990s.
“We believe this is a tremendous location for our new Chatham elementary school,” Dan Parr, Director of Education said in a release. “The new Chatham Children’s Treatment Centre is to be located on an adjacent property on McNaughton, which will afford many valuable partnership possibilities that will benefit our students.”
He said school and treatment centre staff will be able to connect more easily and more frequently for face-to-face meetings, which will lead to enhanced communication and better planning. Joint educational opportunities can occur more easily and there is potential for sharing of facilities on PD days, or for workshops and conferences.
This location would also make it easier for students with special needs to use the centre’s adapted pool and outdoor learning spaces, including an adapted playground.
In addition, the close proximity to St. Clair College will provide for easy participation in a number programs, which are offered to elementary school students by the college. The location is also adjacent to a soccer pitch and baseball fields.
Support for the location was not unanimous, with some trustees expressing concerns about traffic in the area. However, the board is required to conduct a traffic study and has already entered into discussions with the municipality about steps that can be taken to alleviate traffic congestion.
“We are confident that the board and the municipality can work with the findings of the traffic study and put in place measures that will address concerns related to traffic flow and pedestrian safety,” Amy Janssens, Executive Superintendent of Corporate Services commented. “We also look forward to sharing the results of the traffic study with the Board of Trustees.”
“None of the available north properties considered by the Board was either centrally located or adjacent to a parish church,” John Van Heck, Chair of the Board noted. “However, when we looked at the additional ride times, both for bus students and for transportation to church for Mass, we found them to be minimal, and far outweighed by the tremendous opportunities which this location affords.”
The property is also serviced and appropriately zoned so September 2019 remains the board’s target opening date for the new school.
“Our staff continues to work on securing a location for the new south Chatham elementary school and a further announcement is expected in the not-too-distant future,” Parr added.
For more information regarding the Pupil Accommodation Review – Chatham Elementary Schools, visit the Board’s website at www.st-clair.net
