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No immediate plans to close Halton Catholic schools 9 · Thursday, January 7, 2010 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com Continued from page 1 New Pupil Places funding grants. Like Halton's public school board, the HCDSB has relied on Growth Schools funding to top up what it receives in New Pupil Places (NPP) grants, money it receives from the Province for all new students coming into the region. The NPP grants are often not enough to pay for the cost of a new schools because they are given based on region-wide, rather than neighbourhoodspecific, enrollment levels, noted Burlington trustee and new HCDSB chair Bob Van de Vrande said. For instance, 400 new students might move into a fast growing area in Milton, but the board might lose at the same time 100 students in an older community in Halton, so the total NPP grants are only for 300 students. "The funding (for new schools) is a tremendous problem," Van de Vrande said. He said the NPP grants also haven't kept pace with building costs. The construction of the recently opened Corpus Christi is $2.6 million over budget, though the board expects to recoup about $1.2 million of that money later on, Van de Vrande and the board of trustees were told by staff Tuesday night. Zucker said the school board is working with Ministry staff to determine what school projects might be able to go ahead with NPP "There are no schools identified for imminent closure. Never is too long, but as a parent, I would not have any immediate or midterm concern." Bob Van de Vrande, chair Halton Catholic District School Board grants and money the board already has. She was not sure when that list would be finalized. However, while growth communities might have to wait a little longer for new schools, the delays might offer respite for those attached to some schools in older communities. The board has no plans to begin Provincially-mandated processes to close schools in various parts of Halton, confirmed HCDSB planner Scott Bland. Such a process had been projected to start in Halton Hills in 2008-09, but is on hold because the board doesn't have the money to build the new 658-pupil place elementary school in west Georgetown that was to replace the 50-year-old Holy Cross, according to the board's Long Term Capital Plan approved in principle by the board of trustees last March. That capital plan, which proposes an accommodation program to 2022/23, had also envisioned beginning such processes in south Burlington and south Oakville during the next school year, in advance of possible future closures of St. Raphael in Burlington and St. Joseph and St. Vincent in Oakville, three elementary schools that are about 50years-old and with smaller capacities of approximately 350 students. "There are no schools identified for imminent closure," cautioned Van de Vrande, noting what's included in the Board's capital plan requires more examination and a long public process. "Never is too long," he said. "But as a parent, I would not have any immediate or midterm concern." Van de Vrande added, since no individual closures have been approved by trustees, the board has not estimated how much could be raised from the sale of closed school sites to finance new schools. He is hopeful the Ministry will revise its school capital funding formula. Milton trustee Sandor Koso said he is Which schools are affected? See story page 11 hopeful the board can get the funding it requires for schools scheduled to open in his fast-growing community. He said a new high school to go along with the existing Bishop Reding is an urgent need and the proposed Lumen Christi, which would be the first Catholic elementary west of the CN railway tracks, will also be needed. However, he was not prepared to comment on whether the board should be consolidating schools in areas of declining enrollment to fund new schools in his area. "I've not been in the picture long enough to really comment on that," explained Koso, who only assumed his role this past June as a replacement trustee. The long-term capital plan was submitted to the Province last June and proposes 10 new schools, three school additions and closing nine existing schools, subject to future review and a public process. According to the plan, the proposed accommodation strategy by 2022-23 would reduce the number of students in portables, provide for a fiscal surplus rather than deficits in school administration and operations, and result in $4.8 million in taxpayer savings and $2.4 million in Board savings annually to possibly reinvest in program and faculty revitalization. It would also reduce facility renewal costs from $109.6 million to $57.7 million to the year 2018-19, according to the plan. 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