Boundary change plan worries parents
‘Complicated chess board’: Panel’s goal is to redistribute students more evenly
Since moving to Yaletown five years ago, Shirley Anthony has pictured her daughters attending the elementary school a block from their home.
But a boundary change proposed by the Vancouver school board now has the mother of two picturing an entirely different scenario: A 20-minute drive through heavy traffic to a school far away from her family ’s walkable neighbourhood.
“This would essentially rip us out of our community,” said Anthony.
If approved by the school board, the proposed boundary changes would come into effect in September 2019. The goal is to redistribute students more evenly between elementary schools that have too little space and those that still have space, said VSB director of planning and facilities Jim Meschino, noting that 14 Vancouver schools had waiting lists last September.
Yaletown wouldn’t be the only neighbourhood impacted by the changes. The proposed boundary adjustments would affect schools in Mount Pleasant, Kitsilano, West Point Grey and the Olympic Village, as well as downtown.
“It’s a big complicated chess board. You move one piece and it affects 12 other pieces,” said former VSB chair Patti Bacchus. “But you have to remember that these are people’s lives that you’re dealing with. It’s tough enough in the city for young families. This could be the last straw for some.”
Bacchus is particularly concerned that siblings won’t be “grandfathered” into schools. Under the proposal, if a family ’s catchment changes, children already in a particular school will be allowed to remain there, but siblings starting kindergarten will need to go to the new catchment school.
While students can apply to go to an out-of-catchment school, they will be given lower priority than those that live within the catchment.
For Anthony, the proposed boundary adjustment stung even more when she realized several new Yaletown developments, some still under construction, would fall within the new Elsie Roy Elementary catchment area, while her building, which is within sight of the school, would be excluded.
“We’ve been here five years and we’re going to be displaced in favour of new families,” she said. “It’s to the point where we’re wondering, ‘Should we move?’”
VSB is accepting written feedback on the proposed boundary changes. The third of three open houses is planned for May 22 from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at King George Secondary.
The boundary change will be discussed at a committee meeting on June 13.
If the board decides to move the proposal forward, it could be put to a vote on June 25.