It’s going to be a complicated and costly project, but the Nanaimo-Ladysmith School District is keen to expand Nanaimo District Secondary School and now their options are clear.
A comprehensive site study on the 4-hectare property where the school sits has been completed by a third-party consultant. The site is also shared with the City and Vancouver Island University. It lays out numerous options and addresses the pros and cons of each, from adding onto the existing school, to building a new facility to accommodate 1900 students.
SD68 Secretary-Treasurer Phil Turin says the study ultimately recommends a two-phase course of action that would cost an estimate $65.2 million.
Truin says it would require relocating the District Operations Centre and the Rotary Bowl, and moving the Serauxmen Stadium off the site completely.
Turin says lengthy consultations with the public, the City and VIU will be required before anything is even close to being finalized. He says they have to start somewhere, and the site study is a key step in what will be a long process. The report identifies the need for SD68 to work in partnership with the City and VIU and create a specialized task force as the project takes shape. Turin says the SD68 Board will be taking a close look at the budget in the fall to determine what’s needed to make the project a reality.
