Parents fight to save St. Pius X and St. Ann

A group of parents and community stakeholders is opposed to Huron-Superior Catholic School Board's proposal to consolidate at least three city central elementary schools into one site at St. Basil Secondary.

"St. Pius X and St. Ann are good schools," said Robert Bressan, a North Street resident.

"Why would you want to waste them?" Bressan asked school trustees at a meeting last night.

Bressan made a presentation to trustees to try to convince them to find some other alternatives to consolidation.

"Give us options," Bressan said. "Have you really looked at what this will cost for transportation, construction and the loss of these schools?"

He said that more than 80 percent of parents with children in St. Pius X and more than 90 percent of parents at St. Ann want to maintain the status quo.

"Why is the board going ahead with this when so many people plainly don't want it?" Bressan demanded.

The board's capital plan calls for consolidation of its two Sault Ste. Marie high schools into one school to be located on a vacant and yet-to-be-purchased parcel of land.

As reported earlier by SooToday.com, funding for that new Catholic secondary school was announced on Wednesday.

The next phase of the plan would see St. Ann Catholic School at 139 White Oak Drive West, St. Pius X Catholic School at 48 Oryme Avenue and St. Bernadette at 462 McNabb Street closed, with students bussed to the vacated St. Basil Secondary School at 250 St. Georges Avenue East.

Bressan said parents are not happy with the idea of having their children bussed so far when they are living in a neighbourhood with a perfectly good school.

He said many parents are considering alternatives, such as the public system, to avoid bussing their children so far.

Losing the neighbourhood schools would mean a loss of playgrounds and community access for evening activities - essentially the loss of the heart of the neighbourhood, said Bressan.

Clean North is also opposed to the idea and sent a letter supporting Bressan and the other community stakeholders who are opposed to the consolidation.

"Please be advised that as stewards for our local environment, Clean North is opposed to this consolidation based on the following:

- Increased transportation and reduction in a child's ability to walk/bike to school....

- Elimination of available indoor community space....

- Potential increase in demolition debris to our limited landfill...."

The Clean North letter goes on to say that the consolidation of St. Basil, St. Marys and Holy Angels Learning Centre onto green vacant space "is not environmentally friendly, nor accountable to taxpayers considering the new construction will cost $23 million more than upgrading/ renovating the existing [schools]."

The letter also says that construction of a new school on vacant land will further reduce the City's capacity for growth and asks that the board reconsider its decisions to consolidate the schools.

It is signed by Luke MacMichael, chair of Clean North.

At the conclusion of Bressan's presentation last night, Board Chair Laurie Aceti told him that the board would be making its decision about the future of St. Ann, St. Pius X and St. Bernadette Catholic schools at a meeting on June 29.

She said the board would consider his remarks along with all the other input and staff recommendations in its decision-making process and she invited Bressan to return at that time to hear the board's decision.