Just shy of three years after breaking ground, the new Glenmerry Elementary in Trail is set to welcome its first students tomorrow.
“It’s beautiful,” said Kootenay-Columbia schools superintendent Katherine Shearer. “I think people are going to be really pleased to see what a new school build looks like.”
A grand opening/open house is planned for October, which Shearer said will give people the chance to see the school’s innovative design firsthand.
“They’ll be able to see the difference in how classroom spaces are done with flexible walls and garage doors to the collaboration spaces that are built into the floorplan, along with the learning stairs it has up into the learning commons, which we would have referred to as the library in the past. It’s amazing.”
The 41,000-square-foot building has been designed to accommodate 435 students, compared to 270 in the old school, whose first classrooms were built in 1956, followed by several expansions. Glenmerry is now the only elementary school within Trail city limits, following the closures of Tadanac, Sunningdale, Central, and Morrish in the 1990s and 2000s.
However, the new school is opening behind schedule. Originally it was to have been ready for students in the spring of 2024. Shearer attributed the delay to supply chain issues and staffing shortages.
Shearer said some small things remain to be done to complete the new school, but over the summer, district operations and IT staff “worked tirelessly” with the general contractor, Signia Construction of Vancouver, to move materials and classroom resources into the new building.
Demolition of the old building is well underway, but will not be finished when school resumes. Once levelled, Shearer said that area will be reshaped into a staff parking lot and playing field.
In a news release, Kootenay-Monashee MLA Steve Morissette, who used to be the school district’s director of operations, said he was “thrilled” for students to attend the new Glenmerry Elementary.
“With before and after-school care provided by the new school’s neighbourhood learning centre, this investment will make a real difference in supporting our growing community in the Kootenays,” he said.
The school’s price tag was originally reported in 2021 at $33.6 million but eventually rose to $39.1 million.
