ÉCOLE ÉLÉMENTAIRE CATHOLIQUE IMMACULÉE CONCEPTION
153, rue Church,
St.Catharines (Ontario) L2R 3E2
Téléphone : (905) 682-6732
Télécopieur : (905) 682-1217
Courriel: ccote1@csdccs.edu.on.ca
Direction : Christine Côté
14 janvier 2013
Jim Bradley
MPP, St. Catharines
2 Secord Drive, Unit 2
St. Catharines
L2N 1K8
Dear Mr. Bradley,
We understand that there is a list of priorities for existing schools to be given a new building. We would
like to discuss our options for moving Immaculee Conception to the top of the priority list.
We would like to highlight the reasons we believe Immaculee Conception needs a new building:
1. Our school population is growing, and the school building is rapidly becoming too small.
Immaculee Conception is a regional school with students coming in from across the Niagara
Region to benefit from our French Catholic curriculum. A more practical and central location
with the appropriate infrastructure (as outlined below) to support our expanding population is
required.
2. The school’s building itself is old and outdated and it is showing significant signs of wear, for
example, water damage to the building is causing bricks to crumble inside the school. Our
recent experience with updating the electrical system to accommodate three ductless air
conditioners indicates that any upcoming repairs are likely to be costly and complex.
3. Although our parking lot will gain some additional space by the end of this school year, there is
an insufficient amount of parking spaces for the regular daily use for the parents. The school is
situated on a busy downtown street, where there is little to no additional parking should it be
required.
4. Our gymnasium is shared with St. Nicholas school (which is attached) and as such we only have
access to the gym every second day. The impact of this is that our physical education program is
not meeting the needs of our students. Additionally, a shared gymnasium means that we are
limited in our ability to offer extracurricular and cultural (music, theatre, dance) activities to our
students.
5. Currently our students have no choice but to eat in their classrooms. We would like to have a
cafeteria where students can eat and where we would be able to offer hot meals within the
approved nutritional guidelines to our students.
6. The layout of the school is inefficient and provides several security risks. The school has three
levels, but there are only washrooms on the main floor and the third floor. Students are
constantly circulating in the stairways to use the washrooms, and to get to/from the science
classroom, the library and the gym as well as before and after recess.
7. The front of the school is on Church Street, but the parking lot is on North Street; this is where
most parents and staff enter the building onto the main floor. The school office is located in the
middle of the school on the second floor, which does not allow for appropriate supervision of
the arrivals into the school. There are security cameras at the entrance however it would be
preferable for obvious safety reasons to have the office positioned at the entrance of the school
where anyone entering must pass.
8. Lastly, the school does not meet accessibility standards and is not equipped to accommodate
students, parents or employees with physical disabilities; there are no ramps nor is there an
elevator and there are three levels within the school.
Our goal is to have a more spacious school building which would enable us to increase our school
population while maintaining the current programs we offer (including a French daycare and afterschool care program; both of which offer expanded French language learning opportunities for our
students), with a separate eating area for the students and our own gymnasium, allowing us to increase
the number of cultural, sporting and extracurricular activities we offer, thus improving the French living
environment for our youth. A practical layout allowing for accessibility for all and providing security
measures would be ideal.
We kindly request a meeting with yourself or someone on your staff to discuss our needs and to
determine what can be done to move Immaculee Conception to the top of the priority list for a new
school. The Liberal government has always been supportive of French language education in Ontario
and we trust that our request will be given serious consideration. Immaculee Conception has a strong
reputation in the Niagara region for offering a top-quality French language education. It is time that we
have a school that reflects this.
We thank you in advance for your attention to this matter and look forward to your favourable
response.
Kind regards,
The Parents from the School Council
Ecole Immaculee Conception