SD38 Facilities Services

The home of the Facilities Services Division and Richmond Project Team

Capital Projects

The Richmond Project Team (RPT) was created in Spring 2018 with a mandate to accelerate the delivery of over 30 school seismic upgrades as well as school additions and other major projects.

Seismic Mitigation Program

A comprehensive school seismic upgrading program is underway to make schools safer in the event of an earthquake by minimizing the probability of structural collapse.  The Ministry of Education initiated Phase 1 of the Provincial Seismic Mitigation Program with district assessments of schools to determine seismic risk and scope of upgrading work required.  Project engineers used retrofit design concepts in the risk assessments that were developed by the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC (APEGBC).  Phase 2 has continued with the structural upgrading of over 300 schools in B.C. as well as various educational components about life-safety during an earthquake. 

In Richmond, six schools have been upgraded thus far (Garden City Elementary, Samuel Brighouse Elementary, William Cook Elementary, Hugh Boyd Secondary, Robert J. Tait Elementary, W.D. Ferris Elementary, Manoah Steves Elementary, Mitchell Elementary, Maple Lane Elementary, F.A. Tomsett Elementary and James McKinney Elementary), two are under construction (William Bridge Elementary, James Whiteside Elementary), one is in design (Howard DeBeck Elementary), and two are in business case development/approval (Alfred B. Dixon Elementary and John G. Diefenbaker Elementary). Another 23 schools have been identified as requiring high priority upgrades that have yet to be supported. For more information on the Richmond seismic mitigation program, click here.

Major Capital Projects

Major Capital Projects are generally defined as greater than $1.5 Million in value and will take multiple years to complete. The Ministry of Education has four categories of Major Capital Projects:

  • Seismic Mitigation Program (SMP)
  • School Expansion Program (EXP)
  • School Replacement Program (REP) 
  • Rural Districts Program (RDP)

The latest enrolment projections, completed as part of the Long Range Facilities Plan process, indicate that current and planned housing developments in the Richmond City Centre Area and Hamilton Area will necessitate additional space to accommodate the growth of the elementary student base. In Richmond, five School Expansion Projects are currently proposed in the District Five-Year Capital Plan, including four school capacity additions and one new school.

Minor Capital Projects

Minor (Annual) Capital Projects are defined as projects that are typically less than $1.5 Million in value and can be completed within one year. The Ministry of Education has four categories of Minor Capital Projects:

  • School Enhancement Program (SEP)
  • Carbon Neutral Capital Program (CNCP)
  • Bus Acquisition Program (BUS)
  • Playground Equipment Program (PEP)

In Richmond, a number of projects have been submitted to the Ministry of Education in these categories for approval and are contained in the District Five-Year Capital Plan.

Building Envelope Program Projects

The Building Envelope Program (BEP) was established to help BC school districts with remediation of schools built between 1985 and 2000 suffering damage from water ingress due to premature building envelope failure. In Richmond, a number of projects have been submitted to the Ministry of Education in these categories for approval and are contained in the District Five-Year Capital Plan.