Campus Master Plan

Senior School Construction Update - October 21, 2021 

Dear St. George’s Community: What an exciting time to arrive as a Head of School at St. George’s!  As I look out my office window (literally), I am in awe of the amount of construction work taking place. Two towering cranes, three large excavators, multiple dump trucks, dozens of workers, and several concrete trucks are all in action today!  Having been involved in school building projects elsewhere, I am well aware of the incredible time, dedication, and money that has been invested by our whole community to get to this active stage. I have learned that this project was first conceived ten years ago as the School sought to imagine what teaching and learning might look like in the decades ahead. I am so excited that the buildings we are constructing today will serve generations of students to come. Our hope is that these spaces will continue to inspire students and help them become the most relevant and engaged citizens ever.   For those who are not familiar with the current phase of the Senior School’s redevelopment, we are creating a new heart for the Senior School that will consist of three magnificent buildings gathered around a quadrangle. The two academic buildings will house all of the Senior School’s academic departments and programs apart from Music, Drama, PE, and Athletics, and it also will include a wonderful Student Centre occupying an entire floor and a fantastic new Visual Arts Centre. The third building is a multi-purpose facility that will function as a dining room and a venue for Assemblies and special occasions, including Graduation and Remembrance Day.   Our expectation is that the doors on all three buildings will open to students during the 2023-24 school year. Currently, work is well underway on the foundations and parking garage level of the two academic buildings. The large U-shaped parkade links both buildings and is an important part of the project that will decrease pressures on the existing parking area and surrounding streets.  By Christmas, we expect that the parking level will be complete and over the course of winter and spring the four level concrete super-structures will be constructed. By spring 2022, we expect work on the dining/gathering hall foundations to begin. That building has no basement or underground parking, so we expect it will go more quickly. The mass timber structure of the dining/gathering building will be largely prefabricated and then erected over the drier summer months. September 2022 should be an exciting milestone, with the structures of all three buildings being complete. Then the work will slow somewhat with attention to the many tasks of mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and interior/exterior finishing, etc. If you, or those you know who share a love for St. George’s School, are interested in monitoring the progress, feel free to enjoy the webcam and timelapse linked HERE.  I thank you in advance for your support of the project. If you have not yet had an opportunity to participate as a donor to this transformative project, please consider a conversation with our Advancement team. We also thank you for your patience as we navigate the challenges of a busy construction site adjacent to a very active school. Your efforts to minimize your impact on our traffic shows your respect and care for our neighbours who are graciously dealing with the increased impact on them. If you have any questions about the project or how you can be part of this transformational undertaking, please reach out to myself or our teams in Operations and Advancement. Sincerely yours,

Mr. David Young   Head of School