Halton district school board trustees have selected a new site for a desperately needed North Oakville high school, four months after radio wave issues interfered with the previously planned location.
The new site, at the northwest corner of Sixth Line and Burnhamthorpe Road, will require provincial approval before the board can move to purchase the land.
The North Oakville high school, originally intended to open in Sept. 2024, is needed to accommodate the more than 1,700 students currently attending Oodenawi and Dr. David R. Williams elementary schools in North Oakville.
In a press release from the school board, Oakville trustee Kelly Amos says, “Thanks to the collaborative work with our municipal partners, I believe we have an even better location for the new school, without causing significant delay.”
At a March meeting, trustees were told that the decision to abandon a location at the intersection of Neyagawa Boulevard and Dundas Street West would definitely delay the planned opening of the new school.
The board decided against building at that site because of concerns about radio towers on Dundas Street West, about 775 metres west of the site.
A consultant’s report apparently suggested that radio waves from the AM towers could “impede or impair electronics” in the high school.
The board has declined to make the report public, but an independent expert who contacted Oakville News questioned its conclusions.
The school board says it has communicated with property owners Saints Peter and Paul Serbian Church that it is no longer interested in acquiring those lands.
The Town of Oakville still intends to build a library and community centre at that location and will be seeking advice on the impact of the towers.