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4 - The Oakville Beaver, Friday January 23, 2009 www.oakvillebeaver.com Board hopes to resolve southeast Oakville accomodation issue by June By Tina Depko OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Halton District School Board (HDSB) Director of Education Wayne Joudrie has presented a proposal for a community consultation process to address the accommodation issues in public schools in southeast Oakville. The new process is in response to a report released in December by former education minister Dave Cooke, who said the PARC 14 process was flawed and recommended the board take another look at its options. The board voted on July 2, 2008 to close Brantwood, Linbrook, Chisholm and New Central public schools and build a school in Clearview. The two remaining southeast Oakville schools, E. J. James and Maplegrove, would be renovated. That decision was not the preferred option put forward by the Program and Accommodation and Review Committee, labelled PARC 14. A petition led to the Ministry of Education appointing Cooke to review the board's decision. The board has decided to pro- ceed with Cooke's recommendations, among which included going ahead with the new school for Clearview and developing a consultation process to determine what will happen to the remaining public schools in southeast Oakville. Joudrie's proposed community consultation process will be put before trustees to approve at the Feb. 4 board meeting. The plan is comparable to the consultation process that took place this fall to address accommodation problems in Ward 4, with some alterations. "The process itself that is being described here is, in some respects, similar to the Ward 4 consultation, but it is an enhancement," Joudrie said. "We learned some things from Ward 4." The budget outlined by Joudrie for the proposed process is $50,000, but he said he expects it will cost less than that. "I am confident that with our experience in Ward 4, $50,000 is a number I won't pierce and will likely come in under budget," he said. "We have some efficiencies through our relationship with our original consultants and the investment in training in our own staff (from the Ward 4 process)." One significant aspect of the process, according to Joudrie, is that the alternative accommodation options for Ward 3 will be presented upfront. "Our staff are working through several reasonable alternative options that will be part of the final document before we go to public consultation, but as you can imagine, with the experience I've had with busing numbers in the past, I want to make sure this thing is squeaky clean," he said. "I anticipate you (trustees) will receive the alternative options in early- to mid-February in order to flow this thing out." Joudrie's proposed community consultation process for southeast Oakville has three steps. The first step, expected to start in February, is informing the community of the process. This will be achieved by mailing public school parents in Ward 3 a copy of the consultation process, including timelines, input process, proposed alternative accommodation options and background information. A copy of this information will also be posted on the HDSB board website for broader public access. A public meeting will be held to outline the input process, proposed alternatives and background information. "I'd like to convene a public meeting to explain the process and the options so that people get, if you will, from the horse's mouth, what the intent and details of the options are, as opposed to through some other means," Joudrie said. The second step is gathering input from the community, scheduled to take place in March and April. This will involve conducting a survey of Ward 3 public school parents and school councils, as well as resident associations, with respect to the proposed alternative accommodation options. See Director page 5 Something Wonderful on the HORIZON C O L L E C T I O N by Kingsman Visit our showroom to see this model and all our 35 models burning on display. · Custom Stone Mantels · Licensed Gas Fitters 3600 Laird Rd., Units 12 & 13 Mississauga, ON Hours: Mon.-Wed. 9-5, Thurs. 9-8, Sat. 10-4, Sun. 12-4 905.569.2404 www.ontariohearth.com