Holy Trinity Catholic School Division operates nine schools and two buildings with a floor space equivalent to 3.5 Canadian Football League playing fields — including end zones, a new report shows.
There are seven Catholic schools in Moose Jaw and one each in Swift Current and Shaunavon, which have a combined floor space of 28,622 square metres (308,092 square feet), said the 2022-23 facilities accountability report presented during the recent board meeting.
All Saints in Swift Current has the largest floor space at 4,999 square metres (53,814 square feet), while Phoenix Academy has the smallest floor space at 397 square metres (4,278 square feet).
A CFL field is 150 yards by 65 yards — including end zones — and is 7,931.19 square metres (88,124.4 square feet) in size. Therefore, three-and-a-half CFL fields equal 27,759.18 square metres (308,435.4 square feet).
School ages
The average age of the nine schools is 54 years, with Shaunavon’s Christ the King and Moose Jaw’s St. Margaret, St. Michael and St. Mary the oldest at 66 years; All Saints is the youngest at nine years.
Seven schools were underused in their floor space and two were over capacity, based on criteria from the Ministry of Education, the report said.
The enrolment at each school last year and the building’s space usage rate based on those numbers showed:
- All Saints: 509 / 103 per cent
- Christ the King: 88 / 54 per cent
- Phoenix Academy: 69 / N.A.
- Sacred Heart: 283 / 89 per cent
- St. Agnes: 319 / 111 per cent
- St. Margaret: 201 / 60 per cent
- St. Mary: 118 / 83 per cent
- St. Michael: 319 / 86 per cent
- Vanier Collegiate: 422 / 52 per cent
- Total enrolment: 2,328
Utility costs
Holy Trinity spent $684,521 on utility costs — electrical, heating, fuel, water and sewer — last year, which included $404,141 in electricity, $210,311 in heating and fuel and $70,069 in water and sewer.
In comparison, the division spent $594,104 on utilities in 2021-22, $530,696 in 2020-21 and $546,219 in 2019-20.
The facilities department’s operational budget — including preventative maintenance and renewal (PMR) money for school upgrades — last year was over budget by $214,673 or 7.1 per cent, the report said.
Last year’s budget was $3.02 million and the actual was $3.24 million. In comparison, the department was under budget by $194,320 in 2021-22, over budget by $160,546 in 2020-21 and under budget by $205,466 in 2019-20.
Projects
With capital projects, the ministry approved the division’s request under the minor capital program for funding to upgrade St. Margaret School.
The province provided $5 million under the program to “right-size” and update the interior and exterior of the school. Holy Trinity awarded the tender to C&S Builders for $6,103,846; it plans to cover the shortfall of $1,103,846 using money from the PMR account.
The division expects to complete the project by April 2025.
Meanwhile, the division withdrew its submissions to the ministry for funding for new relocatable classrooms for St. Margaret since the minor capital program should address concerns.
Also, the ministry approved the joint-use school in 2019 and awarded the tender to Graham Construction. The Holy Trinity report says the most recent cost estimate is $65,766,000, with an estimated completion date of October 2025. So far, the division has paid $2,221,222, with Prairie South School Division managing all payments.
Lastly, in 2022-23, the division directed school caretakers to fog or spray all areas once a week for COVID-19. By September, the division had adjusted this process to an on-request basis.
“As administrators become aware of increased illness and absence of students and staff, they can request spraying to be completed,” the report added.
The next Holy Trinity board meeting is Monday, Nov. 20.
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