Opposition MLAs voted in favour of a Yukon Party proposal urging the Yukon government to formally start a process to consider alternative locations for the future site of École Whitehorse Elementary School.
The vote went 10-7 with the Yukon NDP voting alongside the Yukon Party in the legislative assembly on Nov. 6.
The Yukon New Democrats have a confidence and supply deal in place to keep the governing Yukon Liberal Party in power, although this non-binding motion isn’t a matter of confidence or supply.
The Yukon government has committed to engage the community on the appropriate location for a downtown school, but not on relocating École Whitehorse Elementary School from downtown Whitehorse to where two softball fields sit in the Takhini neighbourhood.
That discrepancy prompted Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon to introduce the motion in the first place.
“I think it would be a worthwhile exercise for the Yukon government to launch a process and actually hear from Yukoners and those in the school community about the location for the replacement of École Whitehorse Elementary School,” Dixon told the House.
“While there was a process to determine to choose between three specific locations on the Takhini educational reserve, there was no broader consultation or discussion about the location of the Takhini educational reserve itself.”
Education Minister Jeanie McLean accused the opposition of oversimplifying the process, being against building new schools and criticizing without putting forward tangible solutions.
Dixon argued this motion is a tangible solution.
In a press release issued following the vote, Dixon said it's now up to the Liberal government to uphold the will of the assembly and do what should've been done in the first place: consult on the new location for École Whitehorse Elementary School.
Contact Dana Hatherly at dana.hatherly@yukon-news.com
