Broadview Public School falling apart, parents say

Parents of students at Broadview Public School are demanding improvements to a building they say is falling apart.

Last January a boiler leak closed the school of 800 students for a day, and parents said it should act as a wake-up call to spur the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board to action in fixing one of its aging schools.

But a year later, the only renovation that has been done is an upgrade to a washroom.

"There's mould on blinds, windows that need to be replaced," said Liz Burgess, a member of the parent council.

"We have classrooms where there are asbestos covered pipes," said councilco-chair Claire Todd.

Todd said she knew some repairs were needed, but was stunned by the building's level of decline.

"We have a gym wall that has some serious structural issues. And the board fixed it by nailing rebar into the cinder block. We've got kids housed in the dungeon of the school....they're in the basement," said Todd.

Trusteesays provincial fundingfell short

School trustee Jennifer McKenzie said the board earmarked $4 million for repairs to the school last year, but the province did not provide the necessary funding.

"Broadview was put on our capital priorities list and approved, however it was not funded by the province. And they're the ones that provide the capital money," said McKenzie.

McKenzie said since amalgamation, the board has had to balance the needs of urban, suburban and rural schools when determining where and how much to allocate to schools.

She said the province needs to understand that while school boards need funding for new schools in high-growth areas, issues at older schools also need to be addressed.

The OCDSB's business services committee is meeting on March 21 to discuss the upcoming year's capital priorities list, and McKenzie encouraged parents concerned about issues at their school to attend.