April 30, 2013
Budget 2013: Building and Improving Manitoba Schools
– – –New French Immersion Elementary School in Waverley West Will Meet Needs of Families: Premier
To meet the needs of families in the growing Waverley West neighbourhood, the province will build an early learning to Grade 8 school in the area that will serve families in this community for years to come, Premier Greg Selinger announced today.
“This new school will offer a high-quality education in French and English, closer to home for families who are raising their children in this rapidly growing area,” said Selinger. “This school will be a focal point for families in Waverley West and will help reduce class sizes for students in nearby schools, giving our children more of the attention they need.”
Budget 2013 and the Manitoba Building and Renewal Plan include funds to secure the land and finalize designs for a school of up to 86,000 square feet in partnership with the Pembina Trails School Division. The school will be built on 8.8 acres at the southeast corner of Waverley Street, located in the South Pointe area of the Waverley West housing development.
The school is for 600 students from early learning to Grade 8 and they will be welcomed into a spacious, bright, stimulating environment where they will receive the grounding they will need to succeed in future years, the premier noted. The school will also house a new 114 child-care centre where young children will receive early learning programming.
The new, state-of-the-art school will also feature:
- facilities for special-needs students,
- a learning resource centre and library,
- band and music room,
- physical education and health facility,
- science technology education room,
- outdoor learning environment, and
- practical arts classroom.
"We are pleased to be one step closer to building a school in South Pointe. I know firsthand that the people living here are looking forward to having a place where their children can learn and grow right in the heart of the community,” said David Johnson, chair of the Board of Trustees, Pembina Trails School Division.
“Education is the key to our future success as a province and to the well-being of families so we will continue to build and improve our schools, despite the uncertainty facing provinces across Canada,” said Education Minister Nancy Allan. “This is part of our promise to protect the services that matter most to Manitobans.”
The school will exceed the province’s Green Building Policy by targeting Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Standard building certification.
Consultation and design work will begin in May and the new school is expected to be completed in the spring of 2016, Selinger said.
Since 1999, the Manitoba government has invested more than $845 million to build 31 new schools and renovate and improve schools across the province, he added.
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