Committee of the Whole: December 10, 2024
The Committee of the Whole meeting for the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board took place on December 10, 2024, with me as chair. Staff brought forward two reports with two recommendations for discussion.
I voted in favour of the recommendations in Report 24-124, Facilities Renewal Program and School Condition Improvement Project Plan for 2024 for 2025. The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has a large portfolio of facilities including buildings and properties that encompass over 12 million square feet of space. Within the portfolio, more than 80% of the spaces are over 20 years old and the estimated backlog of different renewal projects is approximately $896 million. The total combined Facilities Renewal Program and School Condition Improvement budget for 2024 to 2025 is just over $105 million. The recommended plan includes a variety of renewal projects including projects to update sites to meet accessibility standards, projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and a change in play structure management.
Staff confirmed during the discussion that outreach and communications to Parent Councils have started and are informing them of the changes to the funding structure for play structure replacements and will not need to spend or fundraise for new play structures. This program is in its infancy, but the plan is to centralize the play structure replacements in the District moving forward. During the discussion, I asked the following questions (timestamp 24:07):
Question: In Report 24-124, on page 6 under the Greenhouse Gas emission section, we say we expect to achieve a 2 to 3% reduction in Greenhouse Gas emissions annually, to clarify is this per site or across the district? Have we been achieving this reduction over the past couple of years?
Answer: This is across the district and is generally being achieved every year excluding the pandemic years.
Question: In Report 24-124, on page 7, under Play Structure Replacement Program, we cite that 11% of the play structures are going to reach the end of their life span, do we currently know how many will reach the end of their lifecycle at 10 years or 15 years? I am concerned we have bought play structures that are going to come up for renewal every 5 years.
Answer: Yes, this information is being tracked and will be included in the Memo to Trustees that will be coming out in the next few months.
Question: Is there a communications plan in place to inform Parent Councils of this change?
Answer: Yes and the outreach has already started and this change is being well received.
Comment: In Report 24-124, Appendix B, we list various sites as a line item for our expenditures. It would be great if we could list out each site so we can point the community to where exactly the funds are being spent, and it is more transparent to list out each specific site.
The recommendations were carried.
Staff brought forward Report 24-125, International Education Initiatives and Programs in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. This report provides an overview of the international education initiatives which are provided in collaboration with the Ottawa-Carleton Education Network. This year the District has welcomed 572 international students from 48 countries distributed amongst 21 high schools and 32 elementary schools. The tuition fees for these students are $15,3000 with $1,300 directed to the provincial government as required. In addition to the international students and exchange programs, classrooms throughout the District have formed partnerships for classrooms to collaborate with one another through unique school projects.
Please note, that the opinions expressed here are entirely my own and do not reflect an official position of the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board or the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board of Trustees. Please note answers from staff are paraphrased, the recording can be found here if you would like to watch the entire meeting. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me using my contact form here.
Key links
Video for the Committee of the Whole on December 10, 2024
Agenda for the Committee of the Whole on December 10, 2024
Report 24-124, Facilities Renewal Program and School Condition Improvement Project Plan for 2024 for 2025.
Report 24-125, International Education Initiatives and Programs in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board.
