Yaletown parents camp out for kindergarten spots
Last Updated: Monday, January 5, 2009 | 8:36 AM PT
CBC News
Parents camped out for days for a chance to enrol their children in Yaletown's Elsie Roy Elementary (above). (CBC)Parents trying to enrol their kindergarten-aged children in downtown Vancouver's Elsie Roy Elementary will finally be given the opportunity Monday morning, after some waited in line since Friday night.
Registration for 44 kindergarten spots opens at 8 a.m. Monday, and some parents in the densely populated Yaletown area are pulling out the stops to sign up.
"We're No. 13 on the list now," said Nadine Nickull, one of the parents waiting in line for days. "The grandparents are coming over to look after the kids so mom and dad can keep spelling each other off."
After camping out in the snow and rain since Friday, parents were finally invited indoors on Sunday.
The provincial government, which pays to build the schools, is only required to build them to fit the number of students in the area at a given time.
With the Lower Mainland's recent housing boom, population in the area increased suddenly, but the schools still accommodate the number of children living there five years ago.
Patty Bacchus, chair of the Vancouver School Board, said the problem is a hard one to address.
"It's difficult to get approval for projected growth."
Spencer Herbert, MLA for Vancouver-Burrard, said a forward-looking plan is needed.
"You plan for the future, that's what the government should be doing. When you plan for the present, that's when you fall behind."
The current arrangement is leaving many area residents frustrated, as some have not been able to get their children enrolled for as many as eight years.
"With all the amenities they built downtown, I think they should have anticipated there were going to be [more] families in Yaletown," said Gillian Howden.
Share Tools
Latest British Columbia News Headlines
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- Police are looking for a light-coloured Chrysler with damage to the driver's front side after a pedestrian was hit in Surrey, B.C., early Sunday morning. more »
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- A Vancouver man who climbed the world's highest mountain is back home and talking about the adventure. more »
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- A sushi restaurant in Fort Langley, B.C., was damaged in a fire early Sunday morning. more »
Top News Headlines
- Canadian Pacific strikers face back-to-work legislation
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Railway strike if necessary, after both CP and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt says she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
- B.C. NDP calls for unity in fighting coast guard closure
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- Passengers' families sue for fatal B.C. plane crash
- B.C. Coast Guard Auxiliary gets new name
- Tsunami motorcycle heading to Harley museum
- Psych ward escapes worry neighbours
- Gang forum honours Surrey 6 victim

