Eastern Passage residents say they need a high school

Dozens of parents from Eastern Passage made it clear they want a high school in their neighbourhood.

A special Halifax Regional School Board meeting was held Wednesday night so people could weigh in on the project.

The province has set aside $15 million for the high school in Eastern Passage, but last month a school board member made a motion for the money to be spent upgrading existing schools.

Greg Feltham, who has a five-year-old son, said high school students in the area are now forced to spend too much time on the bus.

"A bus trip on Halifax Transit can take about 2½ hours to return home and if you're part of extracurricular activities, this becomes even more of a challenge." Feltham said.

"We need a place to call home here."

Chris Peters, another dad living in Eastern Passage, agreed.

"One of the arguments I often hear is that Eastern Passage kids need to get out of the Passage to experience a more diverse community or cultures," he said.

"As a biracial person with a biracial family, I hope to God we aren't waiting for our kids to get to high school to experience other cultures or peoples.

Real estate agent Ian Anderson said he moved to Eastern Passage in 1986. He said the community is growing and it needs a high school.

"A lot of buyers will turn down Eastern Passage as they do not want their children bused out of the area as it makes for too long of a day for them," Anderson said.

Lesley Traves described herself as a passionate, frustrated parent who has supported the high school project for five years. She told the school board the issue is not going away any time soon.

"I support this high school because of transportation times, better access to extra curricular activities, access to academic help, it will allow students to leave at a reasonable time and there is potential for HRM enhancements for this school," Traves said.

"This is a large community that continues to grow, yet we still don't have the school infrastructure that fully addresses our needs."

The Halifax Regional School Board said it will pick up discussions on the Eastern Passage high school at its next meeting June 3.