Waterloo's Elizabeth Ziegler Public School closed for the rest of the year

Waterloo's Elizabeth Ziegler Public School is closing down for the rest of the year after an assessment by a structural engineering firm said work to make the building safe enough for learning would take months to complete. 

The school originally shut down on March 4 after safety concerns were raised about the building's facade. The closure was extended twice, with students expected to go back on April 1. 

On Friday, Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) sent out a release announcing the full closure. 

"Based on the current assessment by the structural engineering firm retained by the board, we are not able to occupy any part of the Elizabeth Ziegler PS building," the release said. 

"Addressing these concerns will take time and the engineers estimate this work could take months to complete. This is a result of the mechanical and electrical connections that run throughout the building, as well as the large pieces of precast concrete and monuments that need to be carefully removed during the repair process," the release continued.

In the meantime, students and families are being asked to pick up a Chromebook or iPad at the school on Monday to help to continue learning remotely.

The board said it is adding additional portables that have "already started arriving at the school, with more portables scheduled to arrive over the next few days."

However, only 12 portables are allowed on the property, which will not accommodate the more than 500 Junior Kindergarten to Grade 6 students and the staff who attend the school. 

"Alternative spaces that support the needs of students in surrounding public schools are limited and a thorough planning process is on-going to accommodate all students in-person," the release said.

The plan remains to have students return to in-person learning on April 1, but it's unclear where exactly they'll be. 

More information will be provided to students and parents on Monday, including the locations of additional sites for in-person learning. 

'Banding together to try to make it work,' says parent

Suzie Taka said the release sent out on Friday by the board is hopeful. 

"I'm glad that we are finally getting some clear communication from the board," Taka, the mother of a Kindergarten student, told CBC News on Friday.

"Parents have used so much time and energy to continually ask questions and while the response is giving me hope, so much of this could have been mitigated with actually honest communication."

Taka adds that when it comes to the students who will be moved to alternative schools, she hopes they "will be notified well in advance and that issues like bussing and after school care are sorted out in tandem."

Taka is part of a group of parents who are "banding together to try to make it work and try to help each other as much as possible."

In the meantime, she said parents have come together through text messages, Facebook groups and conversations on the sidewalk to try to find solutions.

"And those solutions have been incredibly creative, which has been very exciting and hopefully relieving some of the stress for parents," she said.

Taka said some parents have offered shared workspace for parents while taking shifts watching children in a nearby room. Local organizations have extended March break camps, and some parents are even looking into booking spaces in churches and community centres to host make-shift classrooms for students to do their virtual learning.

She said that some parents have been able to secure time off or work from home, but as a long-term solution, she says it's not viable.

"Most of us are not able to take time off," she said. "Even if I can work from home, if you've worked with a five year old, you'll know what that looks like: Very cute coworkers, not efficient."