Top 10 major Sask. education infrastructure projects identified but no completion date set

Following the completion of several new schools in Saskatoon, Regina, Martensville and Warmn, education spending on capital projects is slowing down this year. The only two planned projects are completing school consolidation work in Weyburn and Rosthern.

This doesn’t mean there isn’t still a need for further major projects. The ministry has complied a top 10 list for capital project requests from the province’s 28 school divisions.

“The government and ministry haven’t made any decisions this year with respect to capital funding in next year as to whether or not there will be any new schools that get put forward.”

On April 30, during the education budget estimates committee meetings, Minister of Education, Gordon Wyant said this top 10 list represents what can “reasonably be built within the next five years”. However, this is not a specific goal.

“When you look at the number of schools that this government has built since we’ve become government that would be a realistic number, but certainly no commitments at this particular point in time,” Wyant said.

A number of factors were considered in establishing the top ten list, including current condition and occupancy. The top ten list is not ranked by need, but is alphabetical by school.

“So they’re not listed from one to ten, but certainly as capital becomes available those decisions will be made,” Wyant said in regard to how funding decisions will eventually be made.

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The minister did added that the availability of capital will also play a factor in determining what projects receive the green light. The Saskatchewan government remains committed to returning to a balanced budget by the end of the 2019-2020 fiscal year.

Education critic Carla Beck takes issue with the lack of clear direction with this list. She says it makes it difficult for school divisions to plan for maintenance on an annual basis.

“Boards need to know now, do they put money into a crumbling roof or do they wait and hope that there’s some capital money for that build next year and put that money into their existing schools where they could perhaps ward off further damage,” Beck said.

The long term goal is to get the preventative maintenance and repair (PMR) budget to one per cent of the current replacement value for capital funded schools. This year that value is $8 billion, so one per cent would be $80 million. The 2018-19 PMR budget is $49.6 million.

Based on 2018-19 Saskatchewan Builds capital plan in the recent budget, the PMR target for 2021-22 is $75.3 million.

Of Saskatchewan’s 639 capital funded schools, 414 are over 50 years old according to Wyant. Some schools of this vintage, like Regina’s Ecole St. Pius X, are in need of replacement. Despite the aging building stock, Wyant does not anticipate an infrastructure deficit.

“That’s one of the reasons we moved forward with establishing a preventative maintenance budget, so school divisions would have resources,” Wyant said.

P3 School Maintenance

In addition to these concerns, Beck has been asking questions about the maintenance budget for the 18 new private-public partnership (P3) schools that opened across the province in September.

The maintenance budget for these brand new buildings is $4.8 million this year.

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“That works out to about $267,000 per school, which is four times the amount of preventative maintenance money that’s available for all other schools in the province,” Beck said.

Beck added that these are brand new schools, opposed to many in the province being more than 50 years old.

“It’s part of the P3 contract,” Wyant said. “These schools are being maintained under contract with the proponent over 30 years. So the maintenance costs are set up over that 30 year contract.”

This contract includes a maintenance payment schedule. Wyant said the amount of money paid for maintenance at the P3 schools will fluctuate year-to-year. Global News has requested access to that schedule.

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Wyant said that the contractor does not necessarily need to spend all $4.8 million this year and it can carry into future fiscal years. The province estimates that this contract will save $100 million over its duration.

Once the contract expires, the province will take full control of the buildings in “like new” condition.