Hanwell residents use Christmas cards to lobby for new school

A group based in Hanwell is spreading some Christmas cheer — and voicing the need for a new school.

A School for Hanwell, a local group that is promoting the need for a new school in the area, sent out hundreds of Christmas cards to politicians Thursday morning that read, "All we want for Christmas is a school for Hanwell children." The cards were signed by dozens of residents.

"The school tends to be the heart of the community," said Darren MacKenzie, a member of the group.

• Fredericton and Hanwell need new schools, report says

The new school group has been aiming to convince politicians that Hanwell is the best place to build a new kindergarten to Grade 8 school, which would contain about 650 students.

The group's Facebook page said the cards were a huge success.

Treasury Board president Roger Melanson accepted the cards and promised they would be delivered to Premier Brian Gallant and Education Minister Brian Kenny.

"We were grateful to have a few minutes of his time to discuss this issue and stress the importance of adopting the DEC [district education council] recommendation to build a school in Hanwell," read the post. 

"Although we did not leave with a commitment, we did leave knowing our group's concerns were voiced and hopefully heard."

Not all is merry and bright

The municipality of Hanwell and the city of Fredericton are currently in a tug-of-war over the location for a new school.

The conflict came to life when Fredericton Mayor Mike O'Brien said "building a school in Hanwell instead of Fredericton would be a mistake."

That worried Hanwell residents.

"We're not looking to try to get into some kind of fight with Fredericton over it," said MacKenzie.

"Hanwell is growing...we need something to sustain that locally."

The community has been growing by about 15 per cent every five years, the group says.

An Ernst & Young report issued earlier this fall, addressed the need for a new school on Fredericton's southside and in Hanwell to deal with existing buildings that are overcrowded.

MacKenzie said he felt district education council has made the new Hanwell school one of its top priorities and he's hoping politicians will too.

"In some cases kids are on the buses for more than an hour each way," he said. "[The] sun is not up when the kids go to school and the sun is not up when the kids go home."