The Citizen, 2003-11-05, Page 23THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2003. PAGE 23.
Construction financing approved for two new schools
By Stew Slater
Special to The Citizen
Financing for the construction of
two new elementary schools — both
being built to replace aging facilities
— was approved Monday, Oct. 27
by trustees of the Huron-Perth
Catholic District School Board.
The two schools are St. Joseph’s in
Clinton and St. Mary’s in Hesson,
both of which were recently deemed
“prohibitive to repair” through a
provincially-mandated inspection
process. Both will be rebuilt in new
locations, although St. Joseph’s will
just move within Clinton while St.
Mary’s will move from Hesson to
Listowel.
And both are being designed and
constructed concurrently, to enable
the board to cut costs in such areas
as architectural services and
suppliers for construction materials.
Total cost for the two buildings is
projected at $5.5 million, with the
board only allocated about r0,000
per year from the provincial
government for such expenses. For
that reason, long-term financing is
necessary.
According to management
superintendent Gerry Thuss, the
board has always sought financing
for such projects on its own, through
lending institutions.
Debenturing was used prior to
Thuss’s arrival at the board, but it
was also done by the board alone.
This time, the board has joined
with a relatively new consortium
called the Ontario School Boards
Financing Corporation. Originally,
OSBFC included six Catholic school
boards in the Greater Toronto Area
pooling their financing needs, in an
effort to attract the best possible deal
from lenders.
Now, it has grown to include
members across the province,
seeking to finance construction
projects valued at a total of about $2
billion. As such, it can attract the
attention of the country’s top
investment brokers, earn valuations
from bond rating agencies, and
arrange debentures to be paid back,
over the long term, by the member
boards.
This year’s crop of receiving
boards totals 17, needing a total of
$458 million in financing. Even
though it represents two schools, the
Huron-Perth project is the least
expensive of those 17, with the
Toronto Catholic school board
needing about $90 million this year.
Debentures for this ‘year were
issued in two parts; one is a “10-
Year Sinking Fund” while the other
is a “25-Year Amortizing”
debenture. For the Huron-Perth
board, that will translate into annual
payments of roughly $160,000 on
one debenture and about $236,000
on the other.
With about $444,000 expected to
come in each year from the
provincial government for servicing
debt on such projects, Thuss hopes
to have a small portion left over to
place into a capital reserve fund.
NETWORK
CLASSIFIEDS
"Advertise Across Ontario or Across the Country"
Kingsbridge Catholic school
may face possible closure
By Stew Slater
Special to The Citizen
Supporters of St. Joseph’s
Catholic elementary school in
Kingsbridge, north of Goderich,
have known for about three years
that trustees of the Huron-Perth
Catholic District School Board were
concerned about the continued trend
towards decreased enrolment in
what has become the board’s
smallest school.
On a couple of occasions — most
recently during a public meeting at
the school in June, 2003 — they’ve
been informed of these concerns
during informal meetings.
Now, the formal process has
begun which could potentially see
the school close.
At a regular meeting Monday,
Oct. 27, North Perth/Northeast
Huron trustee Vince Mclnnes
proudly pointed out that St. Joseph’s
Kingsbridge principal Nancy Barrett
travelled to Ottawa this past
summer, and ended up meeting
Prime Minister Jean Chretien.
Barrett mentioned the school to the
outgoing leader, Mclnnes reported.
But when it came time to address
a recommendation brought forward
from board staff, trustees offered
very little discussion before
officially placing St. Joseph’s
Kingsbridge “under review,”
thereby giving the go-ahead for staff
to prepare a report about possible
solutions to the declining enrolment
dilemma.
Under the board’s new student
accommodation review policy,
trustees will decide whether to
proceed further if that staff report
recommends substantial changes.
Community input will be sought if a
decision is made to proceed beyond
that point.
Board chair Bernard Murray
stressed that no concrete decision on
the fate of the school has yet been
made.
“There are a lot of pieces to the
puzzle that need to be figured out,
and what this motion does is open
the door for that process to begin,”
he commented.
But education chair Ron Marcy
noted there are compelling reasons
for assessing the viability of the
school, which has capacity for about
120 students but has a 2003-04
enrolment of just 69. No new Junior
Kindergarten students began
attending the school this year, with
prospects for next year not much
better, while 13 Grade 8 students are
expected to graduate in June.
“The concern there is not
financial,” Marcy explained. “It’s
educational — whether the students
there can receive the type of
education they need to receive.”
Trustee Mary-Catherine McKeon,
who represents the area served by
St. Joseph’s Kingsbridge, wondered
whether boundary changes might be
the first option to consider. Marcy
noted that, if boundary changes are a
viable option, that will be revealed
in the soon-to-be-compiled staff
report.
The nearest Huron-Perth Catholic
schools to St. Joseph’s Kingsbridge
are in Goderich to the south and
Wingham to the east. North of
Kingsbridge, the closest Catholic
elementary schools are in Bruce
County.
Thrown rock smashes
truck window in Blyth
On Oct. 29 at approximately 9:30
p.m. a truck driver was travelling
north on Queen Street (County Road
#4) in Blyth when his window got
smashed.
The salt tractor-trailer unit was
near Radford Auto when two youths
were seen on both sides of the road.
As the driver was passing the youth
on the right side a rock was thrown
at the truck smashing the passenger
window out. The driver stopped and
looked for the youths who had fled
on foot. He describes them as being
in their late teens and dressed
completely in brown.
If you can help the OPP solve this
case of senseless vandalism call the
local OPP or contact Crime
Stoppers.
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