Highly anticipated new additions, upgrades and renovations to Edgehill Elementary School have been in the planning and design stage for a while, but now permits are in place, the construction crew is mobilized and ground is finally being broken on the site, according to qathet School District (qSD) director of operations Jared Formosa.
At the qSD board meeting on Wednesday, June 25, Formosa gave a detailed look at what was happening at 7312 Abbotsford Street, with timelines, design drawings and reassurances that student life would not be disrupted due to the construction.
"The last update given was pre-construction; for this update, we have broken ground, we've gotten permits and we're fully mobilized," said Formosa. "So, what you are looking at is the
balance of five new classroom spaces, the media and tech room, new music room, the expanded student support services and the gym space."
For the past few months, in order to have construction ongoing with school in session and then throughout the summer, school staff had to be prepared for a little bit of a shuffle.
"Kudos to the school staff, they did an unbelievable job packing up already," said Formosa. "In September, one classroom will move into the portable and the other one will switch places with the library, and the library will exist in this half-area next year, where they're doing upgrades."
The Peak reported previously that through $16.5 million in provincial funding and $250,000 from the school district, the addition and renovations will add five classrooms, opening up 120 new elementary spaces for students. They also include sustainable and energy-efficient designs, a new multipurpose room, a media-technology room, and dedicated learning spaces for students with disabilities or diverse abilities. The new classrooms are expected to be ready for students by spring 2026.
"As we go into summer, we're looking to do the existing classroom upgrades," said Formosa. "Some major ones include the mechanical HVAC upgrade, lighting upgrades, a ceiling upgrade and some of those classroom relocations we spoke about."
During spring break in March, higher risk construction activities took place, including covered area demolition and structural investigative work. In May, three natural gas boilers were removed to make way for three-phase electrical infrastructure.
Beginning in July and August there will be movement of the intermediate classroom into a portable classroom, as well as setting up a temporary library for next fall. In September there will be additional electrical upgrades taking place.
Join the Peak’s email list for the top headlines right in your inbox Monday to Friday.
