Parents and staff at a Greater Victoria middle school say they’re shocked to learn the building will no longer be receiving a seismic upgrade.
Shoreline Middle School in View Royal is deemed high-risk under B.C.’s earthquake-proofing program, but low enrollment has the Ministry of Education looking elsewhere for upgrades.
Staff received the surprising news Wednesday after preparing and planning all school year to send students elsewhere next year while upgrades were to take place.
“I personally was shocked. I would say that the mood of the board was surprised,” said Diane McNally, vice-chair of the Greater Victoria School District. “In an overview sense, we were expecting Shoreline to go ahead, and Shoreline is a building in need of a certain amount of upgrades and help.”
The district had pegged Shoreline, built in 1968, as the next in line for seismic construction.
“We’re disappointed as a district and a little surprised by the timing, but we’re looking forward to coming up with a solution that’s going to get that school upgraded soon,” said district treasurer Mark Walsh.
The province balked at the plans due to lack of enrollment at the school, which is currently sitting at less than 65 per cent capacity.
“I know they have some schools that are obviously at capacity that need to be seismically upgraded so we’ve asked them to focus on those ones specifically first,” said B.C.’s education minister Mike Bernier.
Enrollment issues or not, critics say kids are being put at risk.
“I’m sure Shoreline parents are very disappointed because they’re living now in uncertainty,” said NDP MLA and education critic Rob Fleming. “They were getting close and closer to approval, and now the ministry has said no.”
Staff hope a new French immersion program will increase enrollment, and are cautiously optimistic Shoreline will be approved for seismic funding in the future.
“If it was a year until we were able to make this move, we’ll probably be okay, but there’s always questions because parents always want their kids to be safe,” said Shoreline principal Nadine Naughton.
The province originally planned to have all schools seismically fitted by 2020, but have pushed back that deadline in Victoria to 2025.
There are still eight schools awaiting construction.
