Schools for Saint John and Fredericton added to province's list in latest spending plans
Miriam Lafontaine | CBC News | Posted: December 8, 2021 9:42 PM | Last Updated: December 8, 2021
Education minister announces $84.7 million for variety of projects around province
Saint John and Fredericton will both see work start on new schools next year under a list of infrastructure projects announced Wednesday by the Education Department.
A kindergarten-to-Grade-8 school for Saint John's central peninsula got the go ahead as did a kindergarten-to-Grade 5 school in Fredericton to replace Nashwaaksis Memorial and McAdam Avenue schools.
About $84.7 million was already announced for school infrastructure in 2022-23 when the New Brunswick government's capital budget was presented in the legislature Tuesday.
The budget includes $3.7 million to get preliminary work underway on the two new Saint John and Fredericton school projects and $8.8 million for a provincewide ventilation program.
Most of the money, $72.2 million, will go toward construction already underway on schools, cleaning efforts, and items such as desks, computers and gym equipment, the province said.
Education Minister Dominic Cardy tabled the plan for school infrastructure in the legislature on Wednesday but did not say when the new schools are expected to open.
A spokesperson for the department said those details will come later.
"The department is in the preliminary stages of planning, " the spokesperson said. "A total of $2.2 million has been set aside for land acquisition."
Four schools already under construction or approved for construction are:
- An elementary school on Cuffman Street in Fredericton
- An elementary and middle school school in Moncton's west end
- An elementary and middle school school in Hanwell
- A francophone elementary and middle school school in Moncton
"Students need safe learning environments that meet their educational needs in order for them to learn and be successful long after graduation," Cardy said in a statement.
"The investments we make today will not only support learning and address space deficiencies, but they support long-term community growth and strategic infrastructure planning across the education system."
The province said it has also made commitments to replacing or renovating dozens of schools over the next five years.
This work would include renovations for six francophone schools, including École Saint-Henri in Moncton, École Mathieu-Martin in Dieppe, Polyvalente W.-Arthur-Losier in Tracadie, École Abbey-Landry in Memramcook, Polyvalente Louis-J.-Robichaud in Shediac, and École Sainte-Anne in Fredericton.
The work also includes construction to replace aging infrastructure for least 12 schools, the province said.
This work would include:
- A new school to replace Campbellton Middle and Lord Beaverbrook schools in Campbellton
- A new school to replace Hazen White-St. Francis and Centennial schools in Saint John
- A new elementary and middle school to replace several local schools in Carleton County
- A new school to replace George Street Middle School in Fredericton
- A new school to replace Forest Hill and Liverpool Street schools in Fredericton
- A new school to replace the Salisbury Elementary School in Salisbury
- A new school to replace Grand Bay Primary and Inglewood schools in Grand Bay-Westfield
- A new school to replace Forest Glen and Sunny Brae schools in Moncton
"While there is no guarantee that a project will be approved within a certain time frame, it will not need to be resubmitted by district education councils year after year," the Department of Education said in its release.