A long-awaited elementary school planned for Vancouver’s Olympic Village has some locals worried.
The land at the centre of Hinge Park has been earmarked for two decades to be used for building the school, which was originally planned to be three storeys high and accommodate 300 students.
But the site is currently under review for a zoning change, which would allow the new school to be four storeys tall and add a rooftop outdoor space, and nearby residents are expressing concerns.
“I don’t deny they need a school here,” said Kent Campbell, who lives in the area. “We need it for the vibrancy of the community, but we don’t need one that is 630 kids plus 62 staff.”
Campbell says there’s a better alternative just down the block at the city-owned Vancouver Mill Machinery Limited plant on 1st Avenue, which is currently mid-demolition.
He says that area could easily accommodate the number of students the Vancouver School Board (VSB) plans for the new site, along with a dedicated school field, more room for parking, and improved traffic flow.
The VSB signed a 99-year lease for the Hinge Park site in 2022.
CityNews reached out to the board for more information. In a statement, it said it is working on a traffic-management plan for the school.
Campbell says he expects the construction will go ahead on schedule in 2027, regardless of his protest.
