While the opening of the new joint-use school is still some years away, Prairie South School Division has begun accepting suggestions for a new name for its half of the building.
“We are excited to be in the phase where we pick a name for our new South Hill School and we want your input! Be part of history and the future of public education by helping us name Prairie South’s newest school,” a survey says.
“This joint-use school in Moose Jaw will replace four schools: Empire and Westmount in Prairie South and St. Mary’s and Sacred Heart in Holy Trinity. This name suggestion will be for the public school in Prairie South.”
The division kicked off the naming contest in late January by launching a survey asking people what they wanted for a name. The survey asks whether people are employees, students, parents/guardians, school community council members or residents; the proposed name; the meaning behind the name; and why the name is important.
The survey is open until Friday, Feb. 23 at 1 p.m. and can be found at www.prairiesouth.ca/help-us-name-the-new-south-hill-school.
“It’ll be exciting to see the information come back from that. I’m pretty excited to see some of the comments and ideas that will come back from that,” trustee Crystal Froese said during the Feb. 6 board meeting.
Division administration informed the board that, so far, 121 people had filled out the survey.
Administration also said that the construction project is “a little behind” schedule. The goal was for builders to be finished by Sept. 1, 2025, so both school divisions would have time to move in. However, it’s unlikely that contractors will meet that deadline because of issues they’ve experienced.
Yet, construction crews have just started erecting the building’s steel skeleton, which people can see by visiting the actual site or checking out the division’s website.
Meanwhile, the province recently sent Prairie South a cheque with the first payment for outstanding construction bills, administration said. However, the province plans to pay the next installment for outstanding bills in either September or October.
During a previous board meeting, administration said the province owed Prairie South $8.7 million in overdue construction bills. PSSD is supposed to pay the bills and the province is supposed to reimburse the organization for those expenses.
Meanwhile, Prairie South must bill Holy Trinity Catholic School Division for its share of the project. The public division has been attempting to send out those invoices quickly when it receives them so its partner can promptly pay, which helps reduce any negative effects on PSSD’s cash flow.
The cost of the new school is expected to be around $70 million.
