Edmonton Catholic School Board votes to close three schools

Watch above: The Edmonton Catholic School Board has decided to close three old schools to get the money to build a new one. Kendra Slugoski reports.

EDMONTON – The future of four Edmonton Catholic schools was decided Tuesday evening.

After a lengthy debate, Catholic School Board trustees have voted to close: St. Brendan (five to two), St. James (four to three), and St. Kevin (unanimous). Trustees voted to keep St. Gabriel Elementary open (five to two).

“While closing schools is always difficult, we know that this is the right decision as these schools had very low enrolments and high deferred maintenance costs,” said Cindy Olsen, Board Chair.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "While closing schools is always difficult, we know that this is the right decision as these schools had very low enrolments and high deferred maintenance costs," said Cindy Olsen, Board Chair.

In March, Catholic school trustees voted to consider closing the four schools, which have all been operating under capacity. 

The four facilities, which have been costing the Catholic School Board $22 million in deferred maintenance costs, have been home to 832 students. Officials say there are 1,500 unused student spaces at the four schools.

The three schools slated for closure will be consolidated into a K-9 school.

A meeting with Alberta Infrastructure will need to take place to determine the size of the school and timelines for construction.

The hope is for the replacement school to open in September 2016.