Two plots of land have been put on notice to the public by the city of Fort St. John that the intention is to sell the land to School District 60 for possibly the construction of two new elementary schools.
The notice is part of a legal requirement by the city to let the public know what the city intends to do with the land.
The first piece of land is located east of 116th Street, near 108th Avenue in the western part of town near the well water distribution station. The land is planned to be sold to School District 60 for roughly $2.2 million.
The second site is also planned to be sold to SD 60 for roughly $2.2 million and it is located near the Fort St. John Hospital, close to 86th Street and 112 Avenue.
The Secretary-Treasurer Doug Body of SD 60 said that that the School District plans to purchase the land as soon as possible and it will be one of the very first steps before building the schools.
There is still a long road ahead before the schools are built and a final decision is made on weather the schools will be constructed and the land will be built but the plans are in place.
The stats in the area show that there has been an increase of 200 students in the Fort St. John area since 2010/2011 school year.
The schools would be built to meet the growing enrollment in the district.
The province of British Columbia also estimates that the enrollment in Fort St. John will grow another 25% by 2023.
Both elected representatives and staff supported the need for new schools in the city.
SD 60 Zone Five representative Bill Snow said that Fort St. John is the district that needed new schools and that the city keeps growing and growing and the schools are currently bursting at the seams.
Next Monday, March 23rd at 6pm the Fort St. John City Council will discuss changing the zoning of the areas to allow for a school to be built.
The two sites were first identified in 2011 in a SD 60 proposal. However it wasn’t until 2014 when the City Council authorized the staff to put the locations on hold for possible development by School District 60.
