Liberal MLA 'incredibly disappointed' West Royalty Elementary won't get expansion

A Liberal MLA is upset after finding out a school in his district won't be getting an expansion.

Gord McNeilly, MLA for Charlottetown-West Royalty, says he was "incredibly disappointed" to hear there will be no addition for West Royalty Elementary School this year.

"This is something that was on my mind for a while and promises were made," McNeilly said.

"The process was expedited back in January of last year because of the situation both for safety reasons and there is a complete utter lack of capacity."

The previous Liberal government committed to construction at five Island schools to deal with overcrowding. Part of that commitment was a new wing for West Royalty Elementary.

P.E.I.'s PC minority government has $20 million in the capital budget dedicated to projects at Island schools, but the government is not planning on adding the expansion to West Royalty this year.

McNeilly said funds for the expansion should have been included in the capital budget.

"This is short-sighted. This is visionless," he said.

The one-storey addition would have included 10 additional classrooms, support spaces and would allow 200 more students to attend the school, said a press release sent out by the then Liberal government in February.

McNeilly said the PC plan to add mobile classrooms isn't going to work.

"When this approval was done that school was at 451 students, currently it sits at 511 students. That's a 13 per cent increase in the amount of enrolment," he said.

The $20 million in the capital budget will be used to improve conditions at several aging Island schools such as Eliot River Elementary, Montague Consolidated and École-sur-Mer.

McNeilly believes West Royalty should have made the list, and said many parents in the district with children at the school have told him they are upset the project has not gone ahead.

"This project out of all projects on Prince Edward Island, which all of them are very good projects, this one needed to go ahead," he said.

"This was promised, there was action being taken. There were consultations galore and it should have been put forward."

Minister should have taken 'any and all action'

McNeilly said he has just toured the school and there are classrooms in broom closets and changing rooms. He said overcapacity is a crisis at the school.

"There's no case that you can make that this expansion wasn't needed or should have been studied anymore. The facts and figures are there," McNeilly said.

"When a government comes in in seven months and has a $57 million surplus that minister should have taken any and all action to keep this on board."

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