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Catholic board staff not swayed by public input by Kathy Yanchus Metroland West Media 7 | Friday, April 1, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Community feedback has not convinced Halton Catholic District School Board (HCDSB) staff to waiver from its original proposal to close four schools south of the QEW. That was evidenced by its final recommendations presented to trustees Tuesday (March 29) night at a special meeting of the board. Although community concerns were addressed in the voluminous pupil accommodation review interim report, in the end, staff still maintained the optimal resolution to declining enrolment and aging buildings is the closure of St. Patrick, St. Raphael and St. Paul schools in Burlington and St. James in Oakville. If the proposals are approved by trustees, students at St. Patrick, St. Raphael and Ascension will be consolidated into a new Ascension elementary school, and current St. Paul students will attend an expanded St. John school. In Oakville, a proposed new St. Joseph school would accommodate students of that school as well as those of St. James, which would be closed. The oldest portion of St. Dominic school would also be demolished and an addition We, as staff, believe this is the best option. It's not something that staff started looking at Dec. 16 (2015); these are long-term plans that have been under the purview of the board for several years. If trustees determine that they don't want to approve any one of these, that's fine, we'll start over again; that is your right. Facility Management Superintendent Halton Catholic District School Board Giacomo Corbacio constructed. There is still an opportunity for community members to delegate to the board on April 5, with trustees voting on the proposals April 19. Both of these board meetings will be held at Corpus Christi Catholic Secondary School in Burlington beginning at 7:30 p.m. Parents, neighbors and parishioners' concerns -- solicited through online surveys and community consultation meetings -- have been primarily related to busing, traffic, site sizes, as well as the loss of church/school links and the close-knit culture of small schools. Parents have also questioned the board's transparency, the source of its declining enrolment statistics, as well as noted in their submissions to the board, the inevitable loss of Catholic students to closer, walkable public schools should the proposals be approved. "We need to ensure the long-term sustainability of these projects. We are cognizant of the comments, but we just want to make sure we're looking at the long-term as well," said Fred Thibeault, administrator of planning services. Board staff also noted Tuesday in recent conversations with Ministry of Education officials, its proposals may be too late after all for currently available consolidation funding; if that's the case, they will re-submit their plans for the next round of funding, which will more than likely come in May, said Giacomo Corbacio, superintendent of facility management services. The board was hard pressed to meet the deadline, but decided to make every effort to get as close to the ministry's end of March date as possible, said Corbacio. "It was always the intention of board staff to move forward with this process (pupil accommodation review) sooner rather than later. We don't feel the time was wasted. "When we went to the community, we gave the most optimistic dates. If and when the board and the ministry approve the proposals, staff will have a better idea of what the new construction dates would be," said the superintendent. Issues, such as traffic studies, parking and church/school connections, would be addressed by a transition committee if the proposals are approved by trustees and the ministry, said Thibeault. Trustees have the ultimate decision as to whether staff's proposals go through. "If you want to start over again, we'll start over again," said Corbacio. "We, as staff, believe this is the best option. It's not something that staff started looking at Dec. 16 (2015); these are long-term plans that have been under the purview of the board for several years. If trustees determine that they don't want to approve any one of these, that's fine, we'll start over again; that is your right," he told trustees. Maximize Rewards and Minimize Risks of Sports Related Injuries and Foot Problems Exceptional footcare for all ages. 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