Comments (2)

By michellekirby, September 27, 2010 11:19 pm

The original Oak Bay High School in 1915.

Well, with a University, a College, and a plethora of grade schools within our borders, we’d certainly like to think we’re a neighbourhood of learning!

The Oak Bay High School redevelopment design is underway, and so too is the application for additional community space adjoining and within the new school. What will that space entail? We don’t know, but the design team would sure like to hear what you think.

Without your input and strong community support, we may miss out on the chance at additional funding from the Ministry of Education. The Neighbourhood Learning Centre idea is that a community has access to a school after school hours, so the space gets used as much as possible, and the community has access to space for recreation, leisure, learning, and community building activities.

In Oak Bay’s case, the new school funding formula doesn’t include a theatre, so we’ll lose our 450 seat theatre when the old school is demolished. Obviously, we’d all like to see the students and community get back what they have now in the school. Ensuring that a theatre and dance studio are included in the new building has so far been the highest priority established by the community consultation process. It’s the priorities for the rest of the additional space that we need to determine as a community.

Will it be space for a community kitchen, child care, a teen centre, a larger library branch to serve both the needs of the high school and the community (our branch has been identified as due for replacement within ten years)? There are many options available, and we need to make some very big decisions for the future of the community.

Our library branch will need replacement in 10 years.

Please take the time over the next week to visit one of the Open Houses, to learn about the project, and share your vision for Oak Bay’s future.

Saturday, October 2, 2010 10am–Noon Windsor Park Pavilion
Sunday, October 3, 2010 1–3pm Monterey Recreation Centre
Tuesday, October 5, 2010 7–9pm Oak Bay Recreation Centre
Thursday, October 7, 2010 7-9pm Oak Bay Recreation Centre

More information on Neighbourhood Learning Centres can be found at: www.neighbourhoodlearningcentres.gov.bc.ca

Comments (1)

By michellekirby, January 24, 2010 10:50 am

Imagine Oak Bay High School as a brand new, energy efficient, light filled, earthquake resistant school. Imagine Bowker Creek as a natural, concrete-free stream, winding it’s way along, bordered on one side by allotment gardens tended by high school students and community members, and the other side by a walking and cycling pathway. Imagine this new Oak Bay High as a hub for our community, with pathways that easily lead to the Village, other neighbouring schools, and the beaches, as a destination for recreation, library and child care services.

The new Oak Bay High can be a place where the youth of our community share their energy and ideas with the rest of us. It can be all this, with enough support from the Oak Bay community. It’s been done before in other communities, with great success. Let’s take the ideas, from the examples such as Brittania in Vancouver, and make them work for us.

What does Community School mean exactly? And what would Oak Bay High School look like using the community school model when it’s rebuilt next year? I had the same questions, and decided that if I was going to be apart of planning a community forum on the subject, I ought to see one for myself.

This week, I had the pleasure of visiting James Bay Community School. I met with Principal Janice Matthews and Community Programmer, Darcy Topinka. I walked out of there inspired and motivated to see this kind of thing happen in our new school. Although James Bay Community School is an elementary school, I think we can learn a lot from what they’re doing there.

They have a good portion of the school to use for community programming, like out-of-school care, seniors recreation and leisure activities, senior’s suppers twice a week, hot lunches for children at the school, and so much more! Knowing that Oak Bay Recreation struggles to find space to run their out-of-school care, and is currently using the Lounge for elementary school children, I could immediately see an opportunity. Open up a portion of the new Oak Bay High for young children, and like James Bay, children at Oak Bay Rec could have a well-lit, comfortable space that opens onto a playground, or green space.

The opportunities are endless. All we need is your input, and energy to make it happen. The Community Association of Oak Bay will bring together representatives from Oak Bay High, Oak Bay Recreation, the Bowker Creek Initiative/Friends of Bowker Creek to answer your questions, and learn what you want to see from this project at our community forum. We look forward to seeing you there!

Oak Bay High Community Forum
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
7-9 PM
Oak Bay High School

Montieth Allotment Gardens on Bowker Creek