Elementary school to be built in downtown Toronto condo

Plans are in the works to put a new elementary school inside a soon to be built condo building near Toronto’s waterfront.

The Ford government announced it will be investing $44 million into the project on Friday. The Lower Yonge Precinct Elementary School will be the first of its kind in the province.

“With many families living in condos and high-density urban communities, we believe their children deserve access to modern and safe schools in the hearts of their communities,” said Education Minister Stephen Lecce.

The new “vertical school” will house up to 455 students and be built into the third floor of the condo project at Yonge and Harbour streets. A child care centre will reportedly be built into the second floor of the building.

The school is expected to open in time for the 2024-25 school year.

We are building a new elementary school in a high-density condo community – the first-of-its-kind in Ontario.
 
An innovative strategy for #BuildingSchools, with @KingaSurmaMPP. pic.twitter.com/YvlEKKRZ8P

— Stephen Lecce (@Sflecce) January 21, 2022

“This is great news for students in the area and an exciting opportunity for the Toronto District School Board to shape an innovative urban school model that can be used across Ontario and Canada,” said Stephanie Donaldson, Trustee, Ward 9, Davenport and Spadina – Fort York.

It has been a struggle in Toronto to find available land for new schools in densely populated neighbourhoods.

“We know that in a growing city like Toronto, we need unique and creative approaches to creating important public spaces like schools,” said Mayor John Tory in a written statement.

“If we want to build up this city and our neighbourhoods, we need to ensure that residents have access to all the services they need, including schools – this is one example of how we will achieve this.”

Once the project is completed, the province says it could be replicated in other locations to meet the education needs of families in dense urban areas.

The province says their contribution is part of “the Ontario government’s commitment to provide $14 billion to support school construction over 10 years” and is part of a provincewide $600 million investment to support new schools and child care spaces.