Good question.
I'm not in that particular part of town that often, but isn't that what they did when they rebuilt Ecole St. Bernadette? I would certainly think that building a replacement Bessborough on the current school grounds and then tearing down the old school would be an ideal solution. It would mean a couple of years of having no school playground during the construction and demolition phases, but you get to keep the school in the heart of the neighbourhood that it was meant to serve.
I get the impression that part of the issue is that current guidelines require new schools to have a certain amount of surrounding land for sports fields, playgrounds and parking. I imagine the current Bessborough property doesn't have the necessary space to conform to current guidelines.
I don't think this should be a deal breaker. I think that if parents feel that it is more important to maintain Bessborough in the neighbourhood, then the Department of Education should make accommodations to allow for this and let the status quo prevail. We are after all talking about a K-8 school here, not a high school. I don't think the loss of a sports field is that important to a third grader........
OPTIONS:
1) - renovate Bessborough (should seriously be looked at)
2) - rebuild Bessborough on current site (if feasible, probably the preferred option)
3) - relocate Bessborough to the Franklin Yards (acceptable, but probably means more bussed students, and safety issues for walking students crossing St George Blvd)
4) - relocate Bessborough to Salisbury Road (avoid at all costs, think of the Moncton High fiasco)
As far as Hillcrest is concerned, I acknowledge that the school is perfectly located to serve as the neighbourhood school for the old west end, but the current enrolment figures at the school are so low it makes it difficult to justify keeping the school open. I think the time has come to consider combining Hillcrest & Bessborough and build a slightly larger school, preferably on the current Bessborough school property.........