May 15, 2013 

Trustees Approve New School Build in Central St. Catharines  

The District School Board of Niagara is moving forward with a new school build for students living in the central St. Catharines area. At Tuesday night’s Board meeting, Trustees voted in favour of the new build at 84 Henry Street, the current home of Alexandra Public School. The school, expected to be ready in September, 2015, will serve the populations of Alexandra, Maywood and Memorial Public Schools.

Complementing the new school build, the DSBN will enter a Memorandum of Understanding with the City of St. Catharines to work together to negotiate an agreement to close a part of George Street to vehicle access and have joint use of Catherine Street park that will give students ample space to exercise and play, while ensuring safe access to the field.

“We are especially pleased to work with the City in order to make this new build a reality for students living in central St. Catharines,” said Kevin Maves, Chair of the DSBN Board of Trustees. “The new school will be bright, modern and spacious and will serve the educational needs of students for years to come.”

“Partnering with the DSBN is a positive step forward,” said Mayor Brian McMullan. “Schools are a vital component to maintain healthy, sustainable and walkable communities. This joint effort will ensure that families with children living in the downtown core will continue to have the benefits of a neighbourhood school.”

The decision to build a new school in downtown St. Catharines is the result of an accommodation review process that began in September, 2012. Accommodation reviews are important planning tools for school boards improve the educational experience for students while simultaneously addressing the challenges of aging infrastructure and declining enrolment.

The three reviewed schools were all constructed in the early 1900s. Consolidating the populations of Alexandra, Maywood and Memorial will reduce nearly 300 surplus student spaces and result in enhanced educational opportunities for students. The new school will rely less upon split grade classes and will be able to offer students more opportunity to learn outside the context of the regular classroom through extracurricular clubs, sports and other activities.

Now that Trustees have made their decision, DSBN Director of Education Warren Hoshizaki said that the Board’s focus will be on supporting students impacted by this decision to “ensure their continued success in school.”

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