Funding has been approved for repairs at École Lord Tweedsmuir Elementary school.
The Ministry of Education is giving the district nearly $1.3 million to conduct mechanical upgrades and roof repairs/replacement at the school.
The West End school opened in 1936. The school has a H2 seismic rating and is at high risk of damage or structural failure in the event of an earthquake. It would likely not be reparable after an incident, according to the province’s seismic mitigation program.
The money is being provided by the Education Ministry’s school enhancement fund, and the district will also contribute $230,000 from its annual facilities grant to help pay for the project. The repairs are not part of the seismic mitigation program. The district is still waiting to hear from the ministry if funding has been approved for proposed seismic upgrades to Tweedsmuir.
The design and tender portion of the project is expected to begin right away followed by construction, which should wrap up in March 2018, according to the school district.
The school district is also still waiting to hear if the ministry will approve its request for an all-out replacement of the aging Richard McBride Elementary School. The Sapperton-area school was built in 1929 and is at high risk of structural failure during an earthquake. McBride is the school district’s number 1 priority, according to its capital plan. Tweedsmuir is the number 2 priority.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story said the approved projects were part of the district's seismic mitigation program. That is not accurate. These upgrades are part of the school enhancement program. The district is still waiting to hear from the ministry if its proposed seismic upgrades to Tweedsmuir have been approved.
