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G Backyard Touch Closed Mondays 318 Guelph Street Georgetown 905.873.8835 Receive up to $1249 worth of upgrades for only $249. Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, March 26, 2008 3 A $13-million renovation of Georgetown High School received the green light from Halton District School Board (HDSB) last Wednesday. Halton Hills trustee and board chair Gillian Tuck Kutarna is thrilled with the approval of the project. This is an exciting project because the renovation... will be based on the programming needs as identified by the staff and administrative team at GDHS. This renovation is very much home grown in that we will start and end with the vision of staff, stu- dents, school council and commu- nity, said Tuck Kutarna. Gerry Cullen, HDSB Super- intendent Facilities Services, said the earliest date construction could begin is next spring (2009) with possible completion for spring 2010. The board will hire an architect to develop the design details for the project and a report including a more detailed scope of the pro- ject and budget figures is to be presented to the board no later than June for final approval. A report on awarding of the contract for the project is expected to be back before the board in the fall. Tuck Kutarna said there would likely be public consultation in May. An advisory committee will be formed to include GDHS prin- cipal Stuart Miller and members of the school council to ensure local input throughout the construction of the school. Tuck Kutarna said included in the vision for the project, approved by trustees, will be the establishment of four Specialist High Skills Majors which are designed to give students a leg-up to pursue post secondary opportu- nities in the various sectors. The majors are hospitality and tourism, manufacturing, environ- ment and transportation, with the addition of a food school and enhancements to the schools technical facilities to support the programs. She said the renovation of the 121-year-old school will include upgrades and configuration to the science and technology facilities and in the new addition to the school a multi-purpose studio the- atre facility will be built which can support music, dance, and drama along with a communication and technology program for audio/vid- eo programming. She said she is particularly excited that trustees approved the establishment of a Life Skills Centre at the school that will accommodate developmentally delayed and autism disorder stu- dents. These children have historical- ly had to travel to Milton for their high school years, but it only seems right to keep our most vul- nerable students here in their community, Tuck Kutarna said. The renovation is also to include an elevator and a con- course or foyer and increase the capacity at the school by 150 addi- tional students. All participants in the consul- tative process were clear in their insistence that we upgrade the infrastructure, including repairs to the roof, heating, ventilation, lighting, washrooms and other much-needed facility features, said Tuck Kutarna. There will also be a new access road so cars will be able to enter and exit the school from both Guelph St. and Maple Ave., said Tuck Kutarna. She said during the construc- tion process students will continue to attend the high school. The intention is to build the addition then have some of the students move in there while the old building is being renovated. Miller is pleased the renova- tions are going ahead. I think its great. Its good for the school, and good for the com- munity, said Miller. He welcomes the addition of a theatre. We have a thriving arts com- munity at the school. Their space was wanting, he said. Susan Culp, chair of GDHS School Council, said council members are very excited about the prospects of this renovation to support our staff and students and to provide a safe, accessible mod- ern facility as a learning environ- ment that will provide the strongest support possible for stu- dent success. For a complete l ist of acceptable items and to watch the GreenCart video visit www.halton.ca. By implementing weekly GreenCart and Blue Box collection, residents will now have more opportunities to recycle and compost which will reduce the amount of garbage going to our land- fill, said Gary Carr, Haltons Regional Chair. Many neighbouring cities and regions have implemented similar pro- grams and are now achieving high rates of waste diversion from the landfill. Im really encouraged by this pro- gram, especially since its been expand- ed to include some many more prod- ucts, said Christine Upton of George- town. Im a huge supporter of a sus- tainable environment and glad to be a part of it all. Weve been composting for two years now, and as a result , weve decreased our garbage by 40-50 per cent. Not only that, it sure helps the garden. Im so pleased to now see others doing the same. Residents will have the opportunity to learn more about the GreenCart pro- gram by attending a public open house. There will be three open houses in each local municipality for residents to learn about acceptable materials, easy ways to keep the GreenCart clean, where materi- als go, and why the GreenCart is impor- tant to a sustainable Halton. Visit www.halton.ca for specific times and locations. Halton Hills open houses are planned for Monday, March 31, 5-8 p.m. at the Gellert Community Centre, 10241 Eighth Line and Tuesday, April 15 5-8 p.m. at Pineview Public School, 13074 Five Sideroad. An open house was also held last night (Tuesday) at the Acton Library. Beginning mid-March, residents will begin to receive their ful l Waste Management Guide and Collections Calendar which provides all the details of the new waste management programs, specific collection days and information about the GreenCart program, said Rob Rivers, Director of Waste Management. I encourage residents to read the guide as it is full of valuable information about the upcoming waste collection changes. Starting April 7, Halton Region is changing the way it provides waste man- agement programs to households. These changes include: Weekly collection of GreenCart (col lects kitchen scraps and com- postable papers) Weekly col lect ion of Blue Box (papers and containers can go in the same Blue Box) Collection of garbage every other week with a six-bag/can limit Yard waste collection every other week, on the same day as garbage (urban areas only) Bulk collection once every four weeks with a three item limit, on the same day as garbage (all urban areas and rural Burlington and Milton); seven col- lection dates per household in 2008 Metal and Appliance Call-in Service (all urban areas and rural Burlington and Milton) To find out more information on the GreenCart distribution including the upcoming waste collection changes, contact Halton Region at 905-825-6000, toll free 1-866-4HALTON (1-866-442- 5866), TTY 905-827-9833 or vis i t www.halton.ca. The GreenCart organics program was made possible through funding from the Federal Gas Tax Funds. With files from Ted Brown, staff writer GDHS to get multi-million dollar facelift GreenCart part of a sustainable environment, says resident Continued from pg. 1 Reviewing some of the plans for the new renovation are (from left,) Nancy Deligiannis (parents coun- cil), Sue Culp (parents council), GDHS principal Stuart Miller, GDHS teacher representative Randall Keast, Halton Board of Education chair Gillian Tuck Kutarna, GDHS student representative Dave Van Kooten, and parent council member Sarah Burrows. Photo by Ted Brown LISA TALLYN Staff Writer