Parents at townhall discuss 'big challenge' of moving students out of Elizabeth Ziegler P.S.

Parents of students who were attending Elizabeth Ziegler Public School in Waterloo, Ont., got a chance to ask questions and express their concerns at a community meeting Wednesday night.

After a large piece of concrete fell from the facade of the nearly 100-year-old school, a structural engineering assessment revealed too many issues for the board to allow students to return. It was first closed March 4 for just two days, until it changed to two weeks, and now it's the remainder of the school year.

Waterloo Region District School Board's (WRDSB) director of education, Scott Miller, said they decided to hold the meeting after the community said they needed more communication.

"We felt a real urgency to be able to connect with people and do so in an environment like tonight," he said.

The meeting was held at MacGregor Senior Public School in Waterloo.

Catching structural issues earlier

Miller recapped the closure timeline and some of the tentative plans for which students will be in portables and which students will be attending other schools. The floor was then opened to questions and concerns.

The questions included how the poor state of the school's structure wasn't noticed earlier took the forefront.

Miller and other WRDSB senior officials said both annual and monthly health and safety inspections are carried out at every school, but these are primarily visual inspections that would not have caught a structural issue like the one that closed Elizabeth Ziegler.

At the meeting, the board said a large piece of concrete fell from the facade of the school, which was the reason for the shutdown. 

It was noted by Miller and his team that it's now evident more in-depth inspections on the older schools are necessary moving forward.

Hilory Steffen, a parent, said the building's safety is her biggest concern.

"One of the things that we heard a lot about is that there are structural concerns in this building and there are a lot of older buildings. Children can get hurt," she said in an interview with CBC News.

The questions about the extent of the work that needs to be done and when the school will reopen were met with uncertainty.

Miller said a report from the engineering firm hired by the board is expected in the coming days. Once that is received, he said, there will be a clearer picture of what's ahead.

However, without first seeing this report, the WRDSB team could not make any guarantees the school would be ready for occupancy by the start of the 2025/2026 school year.

The board could also not guarantee the school would be preserved from demolition.

Miller said a summary of the engineering report would be shared with the public likely sometime next week, but Steffen doesn't feel like that's enough.

"I hope that we're not getting just snippets of it, but a full report," she said.

New learning environments

Elizabeth Laredo said her biggest concern is the safety of her child as he moves into his new learning environment.

"It is going to be a big challenge to have so many portables, especially for such little kids," Laredo said.

"Some kids are going to a different school," she added.

On Monday afternoon, the board laid out its plan to get the over 500 junior kindergarten to Grade 6 students and staff back to in-person learning.

English stream students from kindergarten to Grade 6 will remain at the school's property in portable classrooms.

French immersion students will move to Sandowne Public School.

Congregated Alternative Continuum of Education (ACE) Program students will be moved to JW Gerth Public School.

Students who are part of the enrichment program will be moved to Brigadoon Public School.

The board said seven portables are being moved onto the school property, bringing the total to 12. There will also be two washroom and two office trailers at the site.

When parents asked why only some students were staying in portables at Ziegler, the WRDSB team said zoning regulations state that no more than 12 portables would be permitted on the property for safety reasons.

Moving forward

In efforts to ensure the same fate doesn't befall other parents of students at other schools, many asked how they could ensure the board receives adequate funding to tackle these types of issues.

The WRDSB team said they've been in contact with two local MPPs to advocate for more funding from the province, and urged anyone interested to contact their MPP as well.

"We need to know that funds are available, that the government is behind our board," said Steffen.

"But I do think, having heard the meeting, that the school board is doing the best that they can to make reparations," she added.

"I just think there's a lot of uncertainty, which is what we're walking away with tonight and that's unfortunate."