Mouldy Villeray school set to receive $16M facelift

An elementary school in Montreal's Villeray neighbourhood that has been shuttered for a year due to mould contamination will be rehabilitated with $16 million earmarked to bring the school back into commission.

On Friday, the Quebec government announced it had set aside $10 million to rebuild Saint-Grard School, with the Commission Scolaire de Montral adding $6 million in funds. The new school will include10 more classrooms and a new gymnasium.

Closed on Jan. 11, 2012, the school's 425 students were forced to first attend classes at Collge Ahuntsic and then Georges Vanier secondary school.

The parents of children at the school were steadfast in their fight to get answers from the school board over theclosure. They formed the Regroupement de parents de l'cole St-Grard, headed by Chantal Laperrire, a parent of two students, to put pressure on the board.

"We asked for documents [by way of Access to Information requests]... We went to the school board whenever they had meetings. We were sending letters and we went to the media," Laperrire told CBC MontrealsDaybreak.

Laperrire feared the school board wasn't going to test for mould contamination and the group offered to pay to have that testcompleted. The board eventually did the testing and took responsibility forthe cost.

The parentshad an event planned for outsideof the schoolyesterday, hoping todraw more attention to theissue. Instead, it turned into a victorycelebration of sorts as they welcomed news that money had been allocated to remedy the situation. But, the parents remainguardedly optimistic.

"Personally, Im going to believe it when I see the first bulldozer in the schoolyard," said Elisabeth Rousseau, the mother of two children who attend the school.

"Theres a lot of work to be done yet since our school was built in the 1930s ... Of course weve got our hopes up, but work has just begun in a way. "

The CSDM and Ministry of Education were unavailable for interviews with Daybreak Monday morning, but released a statement on Friday.

It said thattwo will work together in setting priorities for schools in need of attention. The Ministry of Educationnoted the CSDM is responsible for the necessary funds and the government will only step in with funds in extraordinary cases of major building renovation or replacement.

Saint-Grard School is scheduled to reopen in January 2015.