Protests expected tonight against Hamilton high school closures

It'll be a packed house at the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board tonight when trustees ratify decisions to close seven local high schools.

On the mountain, Barton, Mountain and Hill Park are scheduled to close and be replaced by one new high school.

Delta, Sir John A. Macdonald and Parkview are scheduled to close in the lower city and also be replaced with a new high school.

In Dundas, Parkside is scheduled to close with its students being moved to a renovated Highland Secondary.

At least two community groups will protest at tonight's meeting.

Barton supporters will hold a silent protest with the motto "Strong. Strategic. Silent. Smart."

Hill Park supporters will meet in Gore Park at 4 p.m. and march to the education centre at 100 Main St. W.

Barton supporters were shocked by the May 23 decision to keep Sherwood Secondary open and build a new school on the Mountain, said Erin McKay, Barton students' council president.

Board staff and the south accommodation review committee (ARC) recommended five options, only one of which proposed closing Barton. Several proposed closing Sherwood.

Because of that, the Barton community didn't feel the need to mobilize, McKay said.

"It was astonishing," she said of the decision. "I was completely bamboozled and I think the community was too. I don't understand why this was so widely accepted by trustees."

Barton supporters founded a Facebook group that has more than 900 members. The group supporting Hill Park has 1,621.

'Nothing is over'

Adam Bryan of Mount Hope is an organizer of the Hill Park protest. He is a recent high school graduate who attended Hill Park in 2011 for its specialized Art Smart program.

"It was the best semester of my high school career," said Bryan, now studying performing arts at Sheridan College.

When he heard about the May 23 vote, he was "really surprised because of all the things the school offers."

Lillian Orban, a trustee for the Hill Park ward, will speak against the May 23 vote at tonight's meeting. She abstained from voting then (the other 10 trustees voted in favour) and will ask for the south ARC motion to be separated from the others for discussion.

She was surprised by the vote too, she said. Trustees didn't even debate the staff or the ARC recommendation, which was a year in the making.

"There are still issues to be addressed in my mind," she said. "Nothing is over until the fat lady sings."

Protests should be 'civil'

Trustee Laura Peddle moved the May 23 motion. She knows there will be protests tonight.

"I expect them to be civil," she said.

Peddle said she's gotten little negative feedback since May 23.

"There was a small voice suggesting the process wasn't fair," she said. "I don't agree with that. At the end of the day, all the facts were on the table."

Peddle is optimistic the decision will be ratified. The number of votes in favour showed that "we are not divided on this," she said.

Watch it live with CBC Hamilton

After tonight's vote, the board will approach the Ministry of Education by its May 31 deadline for money to build two new high schools. The closure decision had to be made first so the board could present a business case, Peddle said.

"We'll know by fall if it's approved," she said. "If they say no, we still have other options for how to settle it ourselves.

"From my perspective, there is no alternative but to proceed. There is no reverse course."

There will be a special committee-of-the-whole meeting at 7 p.m. The board meeting starts at 7:30 p.m.

CBC Hamilton will be streaming both meetings live. We will also be giving regular updates on Twitter at @SamCraggs.