Timeline to build new Ontario schools to be cut in half, Education Minister says
Published December 11, 2023 at 12:09 pm
The province is bringing in a new plan that the education minister says will help get Ontario schools built faster, cutting construction time in half.
Stephen Lecce broke the news in Brampton on Monday, saying the average time it takes to build a school is currently between four and seven years – a timeline he says is too long to meet the needs of Ontario’s quickly growing population.
The new strategy to speed up construction will see a standardized design for new schools, cut down on planning time, and reduce approval timelines.
Lecce made the announcement at the future site of the Peel District School Board’s Malala Yousafzai Public School, he said will see spaces for 850 students in Brampton when completed, moving from its temporary location in Caledon.
“We need more projects like this to be approved quicker to meets the growing needs of our fast-growing population,” Lecce said.
Lecce says the province will prioritize projects that are “shovel ready” and have realistic costs and timelines.
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With the province expecting hundreds of thousands of new residents coming to Ontario in coming years, Lecce said “it simply cannot take a decade to build a school in this province any longer.”
Lecce says the last time the process was “meaningfully overhauled” was more than a decade ago.
The province has earmarked about $15 billion over 10 years for new school construction.
– With files from The Canadian Press
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