News Release
Sloane Says High Merger Clouds "The Real Issue"
(Thursday, January 10/2002)-- The Halifax Regional School Board should stop trying to cloud the issue of its plan to close several feeder elementary schools for the St. Pat's and Queen Elizabeth High Schools by strongly suggesting the two high schools must be merged due to dwindling school enrolments in central Halifax, Councillor Dawn Sloane said today.
Councillor Sloane said it was unfortunate the proposed merger of the two high schools resurfaced again this week during a public meeting to discuss possible closures of feeder schools on the peninsula.
The Councillor said " This is a direct contradiction of their (Regional School Board) past promise not to discuss this issue for at least another two years. It creates false expectations and only tends to cloud the real issue of their plans to close more schools."
She added " Bringing this issue into the fold distracts from the main topic of the closure of schools feeding these high schools. It's bad enough that the Regional School Board has pitted community against community."
Councillor Sloane suggested the School Board study the demographics of peninsula Halifax and the amount of new housing developments that are in progress before moving too quickly on additional school closures.
The Councillor said she had requested the financial perspectives for each scenario of proposed schools to be closed at a public meeting on December 10th, but no figures have been released by the School Board for the public to examine.
" Finally, the land on which Queen Elizabeth High School stands is public common land and should be returned to the people if, and when, a consolidated high school is built.... not for a future parking lot for the QE-II hospital," she said.
-30-
Dawn Marie Sloane
District 12 Councillor
Halifax - Downtown
Halifax Regional Municipality
(902) 490-4752 Cell:(902) 488-4812
