Enhanced HVAC systems at A.E. Peacock Collegiate and a new floor at École Palliser Heights School are just two maintenance projects that Prairie South School Division hopes to complete during the next four years.
Division administration presented the 2022-25 preventative maintenance and renewal (PMR) plan to board trustees during their June 1 meeting. The document contained $8.75 million in upgrades that the organization wants to pursue at several of its schools across west-central Saskatchewan.
Trustees voted unanimously to approve the PMR plan so division administration can begin the process to apply to the Ministry of Education’s infrastructure branch for funding for the 2022-23 school year.
This grant funding will improve buildings for staff and students and provide efficiencies for better operations of those buildings, buildings manager Darren Baiton told trustees. Prairie South usually receives around $2.4 million annually in PMR funding from the ministry. However, the division has been spending about $3 million every year while using excess funding.
“I’ve throttled it back a little back just so it gives us a cushion with the joint-use school as well, so we don’t overload our facilities department,” he said. “And we do have other priorities that we can allocate to if we’re required. It’s a pretty flexible plan that they allow us to make those changes.”
Trustee Crystal Froese commended division administration’s efforts to maintain all 38 schools throughout the area. She liked that trustees were being asked to look into the future with maintenance projects since that indicated they were good stewards and caretakers of the buildings.
Projects in 2022-23
The buildings department wants to pursue 17 projects worth $3,290,000 during the 2022-23 school year. In Moose Jaw, those projects include:
- A.E. Peacock: $450,000, including new asphalt, a roof replacement and new gym backboard safety straps
- Central Collegiate: $200,000 for new asphalt parking lots
- Transportation shop: $30,000 for relocation of a fence and additional electrical plugins
- Palliser Heights: $50,000 for new flooring
- Caronport Elementary School: $100,000 for lighting upgrades
Projects in 2023-24
The buildings department wants to pursue 11 projects worth $2,265,000 during the 2023-24 school year, such as:
- Palliser Heights: $200,000 to replace a roof section
- Caronport Elementary: $180,000 for new flooring
- Riverview Collegiate Institute: $185,000 for new asphalt and change room upgrades
- Central Collegiate: $150,000 for new flooring
Projects in 2024-25
There are 12 projects worth $3,195,000 that the buildings department wants to complete in 2024-25, such as:
- Palliser Heights: $150,000 for an upgraded staff parking lot
- King George School: $20,000 for a new fence
- A.E. Peacock: $350,000 for new HVAC mechanical systems
While PSSD wants to pursue these 40 projects during the next four years, there is no guarantee the ministry will provide the full funding. This is something that trustees with Holy Trinity Catholic School Division learned during their May meeting.
The next regular PSSD board meeting is Tuesday, Sept. 7.
