A particularly passionate candidate for Moncton City Council stopped my wife and I on the street recently and at an appropriate social distance railed against the closure of downtown schools. This was her animating issue - it was why she was running for council. She had young children and was offended the provincial government was eventually going to move all the K-12 schools out of the downtowns. This wasn’t just hyperbole. She said that someone told her it was inevitable.
I have lived downtown now for 15 years and love it. My dentist, optometrist, favorite restaurants, hospital, pharmacies, church and just about every other service I want is located within a short walking distance. Dolma Groceries - one block - exceptional - Sobey’s - 15 minutes by foot - and easily a dozen great restaurants from Calactus to Clos - all within 10 minutes’ walk.
I admit downtown isn’t for everyone. Our 3,300 square foot century old home with four bedrooms, four bathrooms, crown moulding, dry basement, fire places everywhere, carriage house - the most amazing place I’ve every lived. You would be envious of my home office - separate door to the street, fireplace, couch, bathroom, natural light everywhere. The place is insured for nearly three times (if it was to be rebuilt as is) what it is valued these days - roughly the price of a slightly soiled duplex in Riverview.
The vagaries of the real estate market aside, we need more people living downtown. This is widely accepted by most urban planners and even economists. And it is happening. The 37 cities tracked in a recent International Downtown Association study found between 2000 and 2018 the downtown populations in these cities rose by 40% while the population overall rose by 15% over the same timeframe.
In New Brunswick we are seeing some of this but I suggest to you it will grind to a halt if we move schools out of the downtown or if we do not build new ones to accommodate a rise in the number of school-aged children.
Consider Montreal. A number of years ago it embarked on a deliberate strategy to attract more people to live downtown. It worked. Young professionals flocked downtown in droves. However, they would in turn move out when ready to start a family. So the 2017 downtown strategy puts “an emphasis on building family housing and planning the community facilities families need” with “elementary schools topping the list”.
This is a lesson to be learned in New Brunswick.
Forget the ‘policies’ about the space needed for new school buildings. That may be fine for your suburban or rural schools but have a clear exception for downtown schools. Get creative - convert old buildings - integrate schools into the fabric of the downtown.
It will be better for the downtowns, better for the cities and better for the provinces.
As I told my wife, most people don’t really care about this because most people actually live in the suburbs or even rural fringe of the cities in New Brunswick. Why should someone in Hanwell care about population growth in downtown Fredericton? There is limited political salience because of a lack of downtown voters.
But in the end, IMO, a vibrant downtown is good for everyone. My children never took a bus to school until they had to close Moncton High for repairs. From kindergarten to high school without costing the taxpayer a penny for bussing.
You’re welcome.
Love this idea! As someone who will be starting a family in the coming years (and who personally spent at least one hour each day on school busses from kindergarten to high school), trying to find a home (in Fredericton) within walking distance of schools will be a big priority for me.