In a unanimous vote the Operations Policy and Planning committee for the Greater Victoria School District decided to move ahead with the superintendent's recommendations for the future of Vic High.
Following a month of public consultation the superintendent thought it would be best to provide a detailed report of preserving and enhancing the current building. The next steps will be to present a detailed breakdown of all options for the building to the ministry of education, who will then decide what amount of funding will be made available for the school.
School board trustee, Jordan Watters says if the funding for preserving the school doesn't come from the ministry, they may need help from to community to preserve the building.
“It’s going to take a group effort,” Watters said. “Victoria High School is a community resource and it is a real gem. We’ve heard that loud and clear, so we’re going to need community support to help preserve it.”
She also said preservation is important to the school district.
“I think this is the [committee] saying we’re not interested in tearing down Vic High and building a new school,” Watters said. “We’re interested in preserving Vic High and making sure it is the most supportive learning environment for our students today and for the next 100 years.”
There had been plans to demolish the school, but after public consultation they decided not to pursue that option.
The vice chair of the Vic High alumni association, Ian McKinnon was pleased to hear the board did not want to demolish the school.
“I’m tremendously pleased,” McKinnon said. “We are surprised and pleased. We had gone to a lot of effort, and narrowed down from our own viewpoint two very similar options.”