Re: Funding for new schools desperate, The Leader, Aug. 30.
Linda Stromberg and the Ad-Hoc Committee are on the right track, pressuring the Liberal government for the much needed capital funding.
But it’s unfortunate the parents of Surrey, the business community, and other stakeholders have to do the work that the board of education was elected to do.
“We needed it like yesterday,” Surrey Board of Education chair Laurae McNally stated. “We needed (new schools) four, five years ago.”
It has been well documented that Surrey has received no new capital funding for new school construction since 2005.
While funding new schools is a provincial responsibility, where have the voices of the existing school trustees been the past six years?
The Surrey Board of Education has known about the need for new schools, but has not pursued it with the tenacity needed to convince the provincial government that Surrey is desperate.
All but two of the trustees have been on the board for more than one term. I think we need new trustees who can get results and get Surrey the new schools we so desperately need.
Charlene Dobie
SCC candidate for Surrey school trustee
Reining in development
I am so sick and tired of hearing about no money for new schools in Surrey.
If our city and mayor would stop allowing the raping of land and building of homes with suites and coach houses (most illegal), there would not be such a demand for new schools.
Perhaps our fair city should actually take into account the need of schools before they allow developers to clear our city land and allow so much housing without taking into consideration that there will be children needing to attend school.
I hope that people remember this next time it is time to vote. How can you keep allowing all the development without the infrastructure. One does assume we do have educated people at city hall.
S. McBain