The province is providing the Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique (CSF) with $5 million to build a prefabricated, five-unit school and a gymnasium facility on a newly acquired property on the old Chandler Park School.
The prefabricated school will be built on the southeastern corner of Vancouver Street and Third Avenue in Smithers and will provide the amenities needed to facilitate a safe, functional and positive learning environment for students, said a press release.
The new school will replace the leased facility on Fulton Ave. that École La Grande-ourse has been operating in since 2019.
École La Grande-ourse offers classes from Kindergarten to Grade 7 to the francophone population.
The province provided the CSF with $2.1 million to purchase the property in November 2022.
“We are delighted at the announcement of this new funding, which will allow the francophone community in Smithers to benefit from a newly built school and gym, adapted to the needs of students, on a permanent school site, with the purchase soon-to-be concluded by the CSF,” said Marie-Pierre Lavoie, board chair, CSF.
“We thank the Province of British Columbia for its valuable collaboration on this project and its commitment to French-language education province-wide.”
The plan is to build a permanent, long-term school building at the site in the future.
READ MORE: Funding approved for francophone school site purchase in Smithers
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