Celebrate Canada Day in Stratford at Tea Hill Provincial Park!

1:30 pm - 4:00 pm

Music by Kendall Docherty
Mr. Magic
Face Painting
Crafts
Inflatable bouncies
Doll carriage parade
Hot dogs
Strawberries and ice cream

Stratford, PE (June 24, 2008) — Cynthia Dunsford, MLA for District 6 Stratford-Kinlock, said she is pleased with Government’s decision to accept the Eastern School District’s recommendation to build a new school in Stratford. The School District trustees met last week and voted in favour of recommending that a new school be built next to Glen Stewart Elementary.

The recent provincial enrolment study indicated that student populations at Glen Stewart are expected to rise over the coming years, particularly as kindergarten moves into the school system in 2010. Premier Robert Ghiz recently announced that Government has accepted the recommendation to build a new grades four to six facility in Stratford at a cost of approximately $8.7 million. The existing school will house kindergarten to grade 3 classes.

“I was pleased to learn that the Trustees had recommended that steps be taken to address the growth that Glen Stewart has seen and will continue to see”, said Ms. Dunsford, “and I am thrilled that Government has accepted the School District’s recommendation. Since being elected, I have communicated to my colleagues in Cabinet the concerns of a large number of my constituents who are supportive of a new school in Stratford. I believe that this decision will serve the children of Stratford extremely well into the future.”

In addition to approving new construction in Stratford, Government also approved recommendations for an expansion to Westwood Primary School in Cornwall, and approved in principle a new early childhood to grade 12 school in Souris. Construction on Glen Stewart and Westwood will begin immediately, while planning on the new facility in Souris will commence shortly.

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For more information contact:
Government Members’ Office, 368-4330

Hazel Gallant
Government Members’ Office
368-4341 (o)
368-4348 (fax)
hggallant@gov.pe.ca

Left to right: Tom Hayward; Carolyn Bertram, Minister of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour; Kevin Jenkins, Mayor of Stratford; Gerald MacDonald, PEI Soccer Assoc.; Cynthia Dunsford, MLA Stratford-Kinlock; Wayne Hooper, ACOA; Alan McIsaac, MLA Vernon River-Stratford.

Island soccer players now can hone their skills in any weather conditions as the province’s first indoor soccer facility has officially opened in Stratford.

Thanks to investments from the Government of Canada, the Province of Prince Edward Island, the Town of Stratford and the PEI Soccer Association, the new 46,500 square foot regional complex now provides an ideal location for competitions and high-performance training for players, coaches and referees.

“Our government is committed to working with our provincial and community partners to build the necessary infrastructure for Islanders and encourage participation in sport,” said the Honourable Keith Ashfield, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency). “This project will create the potential for sports governing bodies to spur growth in soccer while also producing economic benefits through the hosting of regional events.”

The nearly $4 million facility, which is conveniently located adjacent to four existing outdoor soccer fields, is a clear span, self-supporting insulated steel structure, providing an obstruction-free interior and featuring an artificial turf playing surface.

Soccer has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years on Prince Edward Island. Demand for access to the complex is expected be high as there are currently 6,000 soccer players on PEI, and that number is expected to continue growing in the next few years.

“This new PEI Regional Indoor Soccer Facility is an investment in the health and well being of Islanders and will serve residents of our One Island Community for many years to come,” said Honourable Carolyn Bertram, Minister of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour. “I am sure many Prince Edward Island soccer players are anxious to play on this beautiful artificial turf surface.”

“Everyone involved in the sport of soccer on PEI is going to be impressed with this facility,” said Gerald MacDonald, PEI Soccer Association President. “As a result of the tremendous cooperation among all levels of government and the support of our Island soccer players, it is now a reality and will serve players across the Island well into the future.”

The Government of Canada, the Province of Prince Edward Island and the PEI Soccer Association each contributed $1,328,600 to the project.

“We are very pleased and excited to have the new indoor soccer facility located in the Town of Stratford, where the largest soccer club in P.E.I. is located,” stated Mayor Kevin Jenkins “The Town of Stratford contributed the land, $150,000 and tax relief for five years to the facility to support our local soccer community and to generate economic activity in the Town.”

This summer, Islanders will notice a new type of road sign on Island highways intended to encourage drivers to be mindful of cyclists, and encourage cyclists to ride safely.
This week, the Department of Transportation and Public Works installed its brand new “Share the Road” signs. The signs have been erected in the town of Stratford, and along Route 6 between Stanhope and Brackley Beach.
“Every year, more Islanders are using bicycles as a primary mode of Transportation and as part of a healthy lifestyle,” says Minister of Transportation and Public Works Ron MacKinley. “As tourists begin to arrive on the Island for the summer, our roads will begin to see more and more cyclists. So it’s very important that we take steps to remind drivers to share the road and give cyclists lots of room.”
The “Share the Road” signs are part of a larger campaign launched by the Department in late May meant to encourage safe cycling on Prince Edward Island. Radio and television ads have been running for the last few weeks which ask drivers to  share the road, and ask cyclists to ride safely and wear a helmet.
The department has also partnered with Cycling P.E.I. to promote bicycle rodeos at various locations across the Island. The rodeos will give cyclists safe riding information, and a bicycle inspection to ensure bicycles are in good working order.
“Cycling P.E.I. is very pleased with the attention that’s been paid to this very important issue,” says Mark Bowlan, president of Cycling P.E.I.. “We expect this campaign will go a long way to promote safe cycling on Prince Edward Island and we look forward to continued efforts in the future.”
“Residents in my community have been asking for something to help promote cycling safety for a number of years,” says Stratford-Kinlock MLA and avid cyclist Cynthia Dunsford. “It’s great to see this government putting in the effort to make Island roads safer for cyclists, and at the same time encourage safe riding.”

P.E.I. applying carrot and stick for bike helmet laws

CBC News

People caught cycling without a helmet this summer in Charlottetown and Summerside will have a greater chance of getting a ticket, but wearing a helmet could earn a reward.

The police are working with the Atlantic Network for Injury Prevention to try to increase the use of bike helmets. Network spokeswoman Sally Lockhart told CBC News Wednesday getting a ticket will not necessarily mean paying a fine.

“Cyclists who get the ticket are given the option instead of paying the fine and going to court to come to an education session that really details the risk of not wearing their helmet,” said Lockhart.

Members of Lockhart’s group will also be patrolling the two cities, and will reward people wearing a helmets with incentives such as gift certificates.

Bike helmets have been mandatory on P.E.I. since 2003, but in all that time only three cyclists have ever received a ticket.

 Bike helmet law needs better enforcement, says MLA

CBC News

Only three tickets have been issued since P.E.I.’s bicycle helmet law was passed six years ago, and Stratford-Kinlock MLA Cynthia Dunsford says that’s because of lax enforcement.

MLA Cynthia Dunsford hopes more police attention to the bike helmet law this summer will lead to more cyclists wearing them. (CBC)Dunsford is an avid bike rider, with several helmets, and she says it seems most people aren’t even aware there is a mandatory bike helmet law.

“My biggest concern is seeing a lot of children without their helmets on,” Dunsford told CBC News Monday.

She believes that’s because so few Islanders get ticketed — just three since the law was passed in 2003. Dunsford wants to see more enforcement of the law.

Charlottetown police Chief Paul Smith said the lack of tickets does not necessarily reflect officers ignoring the law. He said officers often give a warning rather than issue a ticket, but admitted they don’t usually go out looking specifically for cyclists without helmets.

Transportation Minister Ron Mackinley said it’s a difficult law for police to enforce. “If somebody’s driving a bicycle down the sidewalks of Charlottetown and you’re in a police car and you want to stop them, you’re going to have a hard time catching them,” he said.

Mackinley said the province is planning an ad campaign this summer that will include warnings about the dangers of not wearing a helmet.

Attorney General Gerard Greenan has put that issue on the agenda of the next meeting of the P.E.I. chiefs of police committee.

Dunsford hopes all the attention will lead to more cyclists strapping on a helmet.

Trustees with P.E.I.’s Eastern School District voted Wednesday to build new schools in Stratford and Souris.

Trustees voted six to three to build a new school in Stratford. The three trustees who voted to keep small schools open last month, Edna Reid, Gael MacEachern and Elizabeth Rankin, all voted no, but did not explain why.

If the government approves last night’s board recommendation, it will have a tight schedule to finish the school by September 2010.

But board chair Robert Clow said it can be done.

“We had some schools already constructed … so they do have plans already so that, from what we can see, is that they can utilize those plans.”

The board also voted seven to two to build a new kindergarten-to-Grade 12 school in Souris by 2011. Reid and MacEachern also voted against that motion.

Anne Miller, the trustee who represents the Souris area, said a lot of parents were concerned about having five-year-olds attending the same school as 17-year-olds.

But Miller said presentations were made about “how the wings would be designed and how children in Grade 2 or children in Grade 12 would not be meeting each other in the hallways.”

Trustees also approved a proposal to expand Westwood Primary School in Cornwall to accommodate 160 extra students. There are currently 400 students enrolled at the school.

The province has to approve all three recommendations.

The recommendation to build the schools was part of a report, released earlier this year, that recommended 11 P.E.I schools be closed.

Last month, trustees voted to recommend to the provincial government that eight of 11 schools suggested for closure be shut down.

Of the three schools spared — Georgetown, Parkdale, St. Jean — one is in a town and two are in Charlottetown, leaving the more rural schools taking the brunt of the school board’s recommendations to government.

Ann Miller, trustee with the Eastern School District, speaks during a meeting of the board Wednesday night in Stratford. The board voted in favour of building new schools in Stratford and Souris and for an expansion to Westwood Primary School in Cornwall. Guardian photo by Brian McInnis

The Eastern School District’s board of trustees voted Wednesday night to build new schools for Stratford and Souris and an extension onto Westwood Primary, but the vote was not unanimous.
About 50 people, mainly from the Stratford area, crammed into the board’s meeting room, anxiously awaiting the results of the vote.
Parents in Stratford have been frustrated at the critical situation at Glen Stewart Elementary, which has been overcrowded for years. Currently there are twice as many students attending than the school can hold. Add to that an expected increase of over 70 students by 2012, according to the provincial enrolment study, as well as an additional 150 kindergarten students to arrive in 2010 and the concern in the community is clear.
That’s why the majority of the 11 school trustees voted in favour of superintendent Sandy MacDonald’s recommendation to ask government to build a new school for Grades 4-6 next to or adjoining Glen Stewart.
But three trustees — Edna Reid, Elizabeth Rankin and Gael MacEachern — voted against it.
They stressed to The Guardian after the meeting their votes were not meant to show opposition to the new construction. They were voicing their feeling the process is getting ahead of itself.
“I still don’t think we have a vision for the school district,” MacEachern said.
“We have not formally adopted the school organization plan and for us to begin by pulling out select recommendations, I’m just very cautious that this is not the right plan.”
The three trustees were also the odd ones out in voting against an addition to Westwood Primary in Cornwall.
That school’s enrolments are also expected to increase. The town houses the highest number of children under 14 in the province and after Stratford is the second-fastest growing town.
The majority vote Wednesday evening, nonetheless, was to agree to recommend government renovate Westwood to accommodate this influx.
But in the last vote of the night, Rankin did not vote against a new school for Souris, as she had for the previous two votes.
She says she felt obligated to agree with this recommendation because the only options presented were a K-12 school or to keep the three old schools open. But she said she felt more study needed to be done.
“I feel like we were very much pushed into a corner in this situation,” Rankin said.
“Students who enter this (new) building could feel very frustrated to come to the same building every day for 14 years.”
She suggested parents in the area ask government to allow their children to at least remain in their existing schools until the new facility is built, to reduce the disturbance of multiple transfers.
Most of the members of the public at the meeting, however, were ecstatic. Many of them were instrumental in the lobby efforts by groups pushing to get new schools.
Lindy McQuillan, whose oldest son is scheduled to begin kindergarten in Stratford when it moves into Glen Stewart in 2010, was very pleased with the outcome.
“I think they made the decision for the children,” she said.
She and others at the meeting acknowledged the difficulty of those eight communities facing school closures who must watch Stratford and Souris celebrate news of new schools.
But it’s the best decision for the children, McQuillan said.
“It is very much bittersweet and I think that word was used by many people here, but the important thing is at the end of the day I think the district made this decision for the children of the Eastern School District.”