Passes budget
School District 47 has given third and final reading to its 2021/2022 budget.
At the June 9 board of education meeting, secretary-treasurer Steve Hopkins reviewed the budget for trustees, with a total budget bylaw amount of $41,215,909 for the 2021/2022 fiscal year.
Capital upgrades
At the meeting, Hopkins outlined capital projects for the school district. These include $475,000 for electrical upgrades at Brooks Secondary School, $190,000 for a roofing project at James Thomson Elementary School, $540,000 for roofing at Edgehill Elementary School, $80,000 for HVAC system upgrades at Westview Elementary School and Kelly Creek Community School and $40,000 for electrical upgrades at Edgehill, James Thomson, Kelly Creek and Oceanview Education Centre.
Child care spaces
Superintendent of schools Dr. Jay Yule outlined the creation of 56 new licenced child care spaces in Powell River.
Communications strategy
Yule spoke about the school district’s communications plan, indicating that the board of education has had a number of discussions around its plan.
“At the end of the day we thought we’d put that out to you and have you digest it and to come back to us with priorities,” said Yule. “All of the priorities are good recommendations but I think we need to hone it down to what is really important to the board.
“Our recommendation is to get a consultant in a staff position, pilot it and take that project on and work with you. There’s an incredible amount of work and I think we have to set priorities as to what’s the most important moving forward.”
Turf replacement
A Powell River Community Forest grant application was outlined for the Brooks Secondary School playing field re-turfing project. Hopkins said the community forest had supported the school district’s application for a 50 per cent matching funds basis. The community forest pledged to provide up to $384,500 for replacement of the artificial turf, which is now more than 13 years old, and with an original warranty of eight years, is well past the time of replacement, according to the school district’s application.
