Nearly century-old Edmonton school set to be demolished, replaced with new building

A school that has served thousands of students in north-central Edmonton for nearly a century is set to face the wrecking ball. 

Edmonton Public Schools told community members Wednesday night that the 1928 Spruce Avenue School at 114th Avenue and 102nd Street will be demolished to build a new school. 

The project will be led and fully funded by Alberta Infrastructure as part of its school accelerator plan. But the news is disappointing for some who would have preferred to see a modernization of the existing historic structure.

Nadine Riopel's son is starting Grade 7 at the junior high next year and will be sad to see it go.

"He's lived across the street from this building since he was six months old. So I think he's going to be real bummed out about it."

Reba Baskerville, who went to the junior high in 1975, said the building is worth saving and its demise is an all too common story in Edmonton.

"Everything is knock down, rebuild, Baskerville said. "And by the time my great-grandkids are around, there will be nothing to say "oh that was around when I was young.'"

It's where she met her best friend Karen Winder.

"It's a great school. I don't understand why they would even be considering it. They've fixed a lot of the schools of this era. Why not fix this one?" Winder said.

Kim Holotawuk, supervisor in infrastructure planning at Edmonton Public Schools said it's out of their hands.

"Unlike previous governments, this government has taken over the management of all school projects whereby in the past school divisions were able to manage their own," Holotawuk said.

In December, the division was told that Spruce Avenue School had moved to the design stage as a full replacement school and that an architect had been contracted.

It's a fast-moving project, expected to start next March and be completed by January 2028, she said.

The decision to opt for a replacement instead of modernizing the existing building was based on a feasibility study done in the pre-planning phase.

"To pivot away from a full replacement could put the entire project at risk as the province is committed to acceleration of new school building projects.

"We do not want to lose out on an opportunity to improve the learning experiences of all of our students," Holotawuk said.

The existing building has a capacity for 450 students but isn't currently full.

The new school will have spaces for 605 students. Holotawuk said it will also offer more flexible learning spaces for a diversity of learning needs — something that could not be accomplished in the old building.

Chris Wright, managing director of infrastructure with the division, said it's an exciting time.

"We need school space, we need modernized buildings in this part of town, breathing life into some communities all over the place. And so if it can be done quickly, that's going to be great for our kids in this community."

CBC News is awaiting comment from the provincial government.