Education Minister Rob Flemming took to the stage at Lebourdais Park this afternoon to announce that the NDP Government is providing 52.2 million dollars for a new Quesnel Junior School.
It will have room for 550 students in grades 8 and 9 and will be built on the existing Maple Drive Junior school property.
Work is expected to begin in the summer of 2020, and the school is expected to be ready for students in September of 2022.
The money includes the demolition of the old QJS school in downtown Quesnel.
The Quesnel School District will contribute 150 thousand dollars toward the project as well, as it will also include the addition of a new neighbourhood learning centre that will provide child care and other local community programming.
Gloria Jackson, the Chair of Quesnel’s Board of Education, says she is very pleased as it has been a long time coming…
”We have been advocating for replacement for 15 years and are thankful this government acted on this need. We look forward to providing students and families with a safe, modern and innovative learning environment.”
After structural issues were found at QJS in 2017, the Province provided $1.7 million to renovate the then-closed Maple Drive Junior school as a short-term solution to ensure QJS students would have a safe learning environment.
The money includes the demolition of the old QJS school in downtown Quesnel.