Ontario Building a New Elementary School in Niagara Falls

May 22, 2024

Niagara Falls – The Ontario government is investing $14 million in the Niagara Catholic District School Board for a new elementary school to be located at Kalar Road and McLeod Road in Niagara Falls, supporting local working families.

This investment will support the creation of 363 student spaces as part of the government’s commitment to building state-of-the-art learning spaces for Ontario students.

“This funding to build a new elementary school in Niagara Falls is great news for Niagara,” said Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West.

“This local investment will ensure families and students have access to a quality learning environment in the years ahead.”

The project is part of a $1.3 billion investment to support new school construction and expansions to existing schools, including childcare spaces, announced by Hon. Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, as part of the Capital Priorities Program.

The overall investment, which is the highest ever made in a single year, supports the creation of more than 27,000 new student spaces and more than 1,700 licensed childcare spaces at schools across Ontario.

“We are extremely grateful to the Ministry of Education for recognizing the need for a new Catholic elementary school in South Niagara Falls,” said Danny Di Lorenzo, Chair of the Niagara Catholic District School Board.

“This part of Niagara continues to experience a surge in growth, which we see in the student population increases at some of our nearby Catholic elementary schools and Saint Michael Catholic High School. A new Catholic elementary school will ease enrollment pressures at these schools, hopefully allowing more students to attend school closer to home.”

“This is a great news announcement for Niagara Catholic District School Board and for the residents in South Niagara Falls who will soon have a new school,” said Camillo Cipriano, Director of Education at the Niagara Catholic District School Board.

“The houses being built in this area are ideal homes for young families and that means an increased need for schools. Niagara Catholic District School Board is a growing board, and we know that as demographics in the area continue to evolve, there will be families searching for Catholic education for their children. We look forward to opening a new school which will service Catholic students for generations to come.”

“The City of Niagara Falls is poised for unprecedented growth in the next few years and this new school is strategically located to accommodate our expanding community,” said Jim Diodati, Mayor of the City of Niagara Falls.

“This new school will greatly benefit local families by offering the best quality education right in their own neighbouhoods and right where we are growing.”

“Our government is more than doubling the funding to build new schools, which represents the single largest investment in school building in Ontario history,” said Minister Lecce.

“We are stepping up with a massive investment to build the homes, schools, and communities our province needs, and to ensure children have access to state-of-the-art schools close to home that gives them real life and job skills to succeed in the future. I want to reiterate my thanks to MPP Oosterhoff for his relentless advocacy for local families.”

Ontario’s government unveiled a new plan to build faster, including providing school boards with more flexibility and support to get shovels in the ground quicker and have more options to use existing buildings in their communities. These changes are part of the government’s plan to ensure that the public education system focuses on what matters most: important life-long skills such as reading, writing and math; improving accountability and transparency for parents and families; and maximizing capital assets.

“Our government is investing in new schools and improved infrastructure across the province to support the needs of Ontario’s students, families, and growing communities,” said Hon. Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure.

“These are part of our historic investment of more than $190 billion over the next ten years to build and deliver the critical infrastructure Ontarians deserve today, and for future generations to come.”

The 2024 Budget: Building a Better Ontario continues to support the province’s work being delivered in the Better Schools and Student Outcomes Act to build schools faster and better use taxpayer-funded assets.