Whereas public schools are built through capital funding authorized by the Minister of Education under Section 141 of the School Act; And whereas declining public-school enrollments in smaller communities over the past 30 years have left many public school buildings past their asset lifecycle vacant and unused for extended periods of time causing these buildings to be dilapidated and unsafe: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM lobby the provincial government to allocate adequate capital funding to local school districts, so that derelict public school buildings long abandoned may be properly remediated or demolished and disposed of as a prioritized part of the capital planning process under Section 142 of the School Act, so that the health and welfare of the affected communities may not be in any way adversely impacted or jeopardized.
Ministry of Education Government is aware of the volume of vacant school buildings across the province and the desire and need for some to be demolished. School Districts can, in some cases, recover the cost of demolitions or sell the properties with the sale price reflecting the demolition work required. There are many competing priorities for funding and the Ministry of Education must prioritize funding to ensure that schools are safe and well-functioning for students and staff and that new school space is available in growing communities.