THE province is looking to add some stability to two North Vancouver schools or, more precisely, make them a lot more stable in the event of an earthquake.
Two North Vancouver secondary schools, Windsor and Handsworth, were on a list of 45 schools that will share $584 million for seismic upgrades, Premier Christy Clark announced in Vancouver on Monday as the final days before the election writ drops ticked down.
The announcement, while welcomed, caught the North Vancouver School Board off guard.
"We were hoping because every year we submit a capital plan per the ministry's requirements and we're pleased that two of ours schools made it onto that (list)," said board chairwoman Franci Stratton.
The province doesn't specify how much funding will go to each of the projects, however partial upgrades, like those needed at Windsor, are typically fully covered by the Ministry of Education, Stratton said.
Handsworth, might be a little too far gone to justify seismic improvements when a full-scale replacement should also be considered as an option.
"We need to do a little bit further work to say, 'Is it feasible to spend X amount of dollars on a seismic upgrade or are there some things we can do to upgrade back to a full school rebuild?' Those are discussions that have to happen between us and the ministry over the next little while," she said.
Argyle secondary was earmarked for seismic funding or a full rebuild in an announcement made in May 2012. The school district is just now ironing out the details for what the project will entail.
"These are wins for us, every time that we can get an announcement so that we can make our buildings more safe for both staff and students," Stratton said.
The province has been working to bring 213 high-risk schools up to new earthquake standards since 2001. This latest batch of projects brings the province to the two-thirds mark.
"This investment means parents sending their kids to 45 more high-risk schools know they will be able to withstand a major earthquake," Clark said in a press release.
Under the province's timeline, Windsor's work will be done in the 2013-2014 year while Handsworth will be addressed in 2015-2016.
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