February 24th, 2023

Hunt Club (River Mill North) Development Area – Additional Details

On February 13, 2023, the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) approved, in principle, a recommendation to change the Hunt Club (River Mill North) Development Area (DA) boundary. This change may impact Hillcrest Public School families living in the Hunt Club (River Mill North) DA. The Board of Trustees may approve the change on February 27, 2023. If approved, affected families will receive a communication indicating any next steps.
We provide the following additional information about the recommendation.

Background

The Hunt Club (River Mill North) area was designated as a development area (DA) in 2016. When the DA was established, the WRDSB shared the designation with Mattamy Homes, the Cambridge Association of Realtors and the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors (2017). As such, anyone purchasing a home in this development area would have had reasonable access to information regarding the DA assignment at the time of their purchase/lease.

Furthermore, Matttamy Homes was required to include the following clause in all offers of purchase and sale and/or lease/rental agreements for all residential dwelling units in this area:
“Whereas the Waterloo Region District School Board has designated this subdivision as a Development Area for the purposes of school accommodation, and despite the best efforts of the Waterloo Region District School Board, sufficient accommodation may not be available for all anticipated students. You are hereby notified that students may be accommodated in temporary facilities and/or bussed to a school outside the area, and further, that students may, in the future, have to be transferred to another school.”

Why the change at Hillcrest Public School?

Development Areas are not permanently assigned to any one school and can be reassigned if pressures exceed what a site can handle. In the case of Hillcrest Public School, the school has identified several issues that negatively impact student safety, supervision and community relations.

  • With only 65 metres of frontage on Renwick Avenue, there is no room for two buses in the School Bus Loading Zone area. There is no alternative exit on the site and no room for buses to turn around. As a result, one bus is required to wait down the street, blocking the driveways of neighbourhood residents;
  • The existing School Bus Loading Zone causes visibility issues for the Adult Crossing Guard and students crossing Renwick Avenue. There is no alternate location for buses to load and unload;
  • One of the school buses is blocking driveways at dismissal time because it needs to be ready to load as soon as the first bus leaves.

The school has been working with Student Transportation Services of Waterloo Region (STSWR), Planning staff and the City of Cambridge for over a year to try and implement alternative solutions to address the issues, but they have had minimal impact. These include:

  • Changing parking regulations to keep parent/caregiver vehicles clear of the area;
  • Introducing an enhanced school zone to slow traffic;
  • Investigating alternative School Bus Loading Zones that do not block or impede neighbourhood driveways and traffic.

The recommendation brought forward to the board of trustees on February 13, 2023, achieves two primary objectives:

  • It ensures no additional enrolment from the Hunt Club (River Mill North) DA will be directed to Hillcrest Public School;
  • Over time, and possibly as soon as September 2023, the number of buses at Hillcrest Public School will be reduced or eliminated.
    • Without the Hunt Club (River Mill North) DA, buses are not required at Hillcrest Public School; the remainder of the boundary is within walking distance.

Transportation

Administrative Procedure 4260 – Student Transportation (item 12.1.2) limits the provision of transportation grandparenting to students enrolled and attending the school on the date the board of trustees approves the change. The approach recommended by staff is consistent with this procedure and provides families with a choice of where to send their students. We recognize that each family must decide where to attend based on their circumstances.

Finally, reducing buses at Hillcrest Public School was a key objective behind the proposed re-assignment for this DA. We have received community input, identifying the desire to bus unregistered siblings to Hillcrest Public School (using the space freed up by Grade 6 students progressing to Woodland Park Public School). Extending transportation to siblings would prolong the current safety and congestion issues. It is the opinion of WRDSB that an expeditious resolution is required to preserve student and pedestrian safety while also alleviating pressure on the neighbouring community.

Summary of Changes

Junior Kindergarten to Grade 5 Students (2022/2023)

  • Current Junior Kindergarten (JK) to Grade 5 students living in the Hunt Club (River Mill North) DA may stay at Hillcrest Public School until they finish Grade 6; transportation will continue to be provided. Alternatively, students living in the Hunt Club (River MIll North) DA can choose to transfer to Woodland Park Public School for the 2023-24 school year; transportation will be provided.
  • Any new students in the Hunt Club (River Mill North) area will attend Woodland Park Public School, including Junior Kindergarten students registered to begin school in September 2023. Eligible students will receive transportation to Woodland Park Public School.

Grade 6 (2022/2023)

  • No change.
  • All Hillcrest Public School Grade 6 students will attend Woodland Park Public School for Grade 7.

New Registrants (e.g., Hillcrest families with an incoming sibling born in 2019 or after)

Questions?

If you have any questions about this change, please contact the Planning Department at 519-570-0003 ext. 4439 or planning@wrdsb.ca.

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Categories: Planning News