Historic Vancouver schoolhouse, slated for demolition, finds new lease on life

A beloved former schoolhouse slated for demolition has been saved from its fate, finding a new lease on life with the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) in North Vancouver.

Known affectionately as the “Little Yellow Schoolhouse,” the structure is 111 years old and has been a feature of Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood the same amount of time.

It was going to be knocked down to make room for the new Henry Hudson Elementary School, but the Squamish Nation, working with the Vancouver School Board and Renewal Home Development, opted to repurpose it as an early childhood education centre on the North Shore.

“Having this heritage home travel from our Sen̓ áḵw, our village in Vancouver, to Xwmélch’tstn here and become our language nest for today and tomorrow and future generations — it’s very empowering and emotional,” Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Coun. Sxwíxwtn Wilson Williams​ told Global News.

“What it means to us is to continue to build our language nest program with babies and toddlers, and really get them immersed in our language and learning our ways of being right from birth.”

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The Little Yellow Schoolhouse’s journey began Aug. 1, when it was put on a barge, travelling overnight to the North Shore and arriving Aug. 2. It was then moved by truck to its permanent home on reserve lands in Xwmélch’tstn (Capilano) by the Chief Joe Mathias Centre.

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It will be fixed up to code before it’s occupied, replacing the interim space that the “language nest” has been using for more than a year, said Williams. He called the collaboration a working example of reconciliation.

“It’s sharing of how we’re going to move forward in the future, how we build our community and say where there’s a need, we can fill the need,” he explained.

“This is something that is providing hope for our future generations to preserve our language and empower our children.”

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The move is costing about $150,000 — $80,000 of which is coming from the Vancouver School Board, which had allotted that amount for the demolition.

Jeremy Nickel, whose company helped move the Little Yellow Schoolhouse, said it was a challenge. Most roads are 24 feet wide, and the building is 32 feet wide and almost 28 feet tall, he explained.

“I will say that the parks department in Vancouver was very cooperative in allowing us to place the building onto a barge right at the pristine Kitsilano Beach,” Nickel said.

“A lot of engineering and a lot of planning went into that.”

In a news release, Glyn Lewis, owner of Renewal Home Development, said more than 800 buildings are demolished in every year that “cab and should be relocated and repurposed.”

“Now, more than ever, we need an array of development solutions to lower our carbon footprint,
divert material waste and provide affordable high-quality homes and buildings to communities in
need,” Lewis wrote.

“Our hope is this Little Yellow School House project will catch the attention and mobilize the imagination of developers and policy makers across the region.”