NDP: 2009 March 23
VANCOUVER - Students and the city of Vancouver are on the verge of losing one of B.C.'s most historic places of learning because Gordon Campbell refuses to pay the repair bill he is responsible for, says Vancouver Kingsway MLA Adrian Dix.
“Students first suffered last March when a fire severely damaged the city’s oldest school building at Sir Guy Carleton Elementary. Now the Premier is abandoning them, plus the Joyce-Collingwood community, by rejecting his legal and civic duty to restore this landmark that has been part of Vancouver since 1896” said Dix.
More than a year ago this designated heritage site - the province’s longest standing two room school house - was set ablaze. Prior to the arson, it housed two kindergarten classes and served as a prominent link to Vancouver's past.
Although the provincial government is the formal insurer, Campbell refuses to repair the building, which is more than 110 years old.
“According to the Campbell government, such a significant educational and architectural site is 'excess space' that can be done away with. Kindergarten students have lost their classroom and the community is losing a connection to its history,” said Dix.
Dix, local parents, teachers, and alumni of the historic schoolhouse held a press conference today calling on Campbell to stop the neglect and immediately fix the structure before it is too late.
“Campbell and his team are currently on track to finish what the arsonists started,” said Dix, noting that the damaged school has deteriorated further because Campbell has allowed so much time to elapse since the fire.
“The Premier insists he is a champion of Vancouver, and that he has dedicated his career in public service to children. His neglect for the students, parents and community in this situation illustrates again how these claims are just hollow sound bites.”
Contact Jasmyn Singh 250-387-0200; Shruti Joshi 604-775-2408
Meena Wong 王小姐
Constituency Assistant 省議員助理
Adrian Dix, MLA-Vancouver Kingsway 溫哥華京士威省議員
Tel: 604-660-0314
Fax: 604-660-1131
email: meena.wong@leg.bc.ca
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