Alberta’s Minister of Education David Eggen took time this week to tour the recently completed first phase of Banff Elementary School’s modernization project and brought with him good news for parents and school administrators.
Eggen took time with Canadian Rockies Public Schools board chair Carol Picard, other board members and Superintendent Chris MacPhee on Tuesday (June 13) in the freshly painted and almost complete brand new BES building – an Alberta Education capital project worth $8.1 million.
Located on the same site as the current BES, the new building represents the first phase of a project to replace the old school building for the community. The current elementary school building was built over the years, the initial wing was constructed in 1956, with additions to it in 1968 and 1992.
While at the school, Eggen confirmed it would receive fudning for a brand new playground as part of the new construction.
Picard said playgrounds typically fall to school councils and parents on those councils to fundraise to build them.
“Playgrounds were never covered,” Picard said regarding new school projects. “So what happens is parent councils, who are all volunteers, do it on their own time, and a lot of their energy gets spent fundraising instead of putting their minds to other pieces of the education puzzle.”
She said the playground at an elementary school is part of the fundamental gear students need and thanked the minister for recognizing the importance of such facilities for children.
“We know in many communities around the province it is more difficult to fundraise right now,” Eggen added. “This is a way to demonstrate that our government is committed to education in the broadest way and community building specifically.”
The next phase at BES, said MacPhee, is currently in the design process and he hopes it will go to tender in early August and construction to begin soon after.
“If we do not start pouring concrete before it is cold, then the expenses go up,” MacPhee said. “We are working with Alberta Infrastructure and Alberta Education to move through this process.”
Construction of the new school, or modernization of the old school, is part of Alberta Education’s overall plan to build new facilities in the province. In March, the government announced $500 million in funding for new schools in addition to schools announced in previous years, and by previous governments.
That announcement included between $13.5 million and $14.4 million for CRPS to construct phase two at BES.
Phase one included construction of 13 classrooms, office space and the mechanical room for the entire facility. The second phase includes the rest of the school, including another 13 classrooms, library and gymnasium.
The completed construction includes an impressive solar array on the rooftop that generates enough power to reduce energy needs from the power grid by approximately 70 per cent. Not originally part of the scope of work for phase one, Picard said when the school district realized it would be bringing phase one in under budget they asked the province to be able to use those funds to create the install photovoltaic solar power cells on the roof.
She said typically, unused funds go back to Alberta Infrastructure and Alberta Education, and permission was needed to use that unspent budget.
Eggen noted the idea was so good that he has applied it to 36 other school projects that have come in under budget as well.
“I confess that I borrowed the good idea they had here for using capital savings in the construction of a building to put solar panels on a province-wide basis,” he said.
