SD57 hoping this the year D.P. Todd finally gets much needed replacement

Two projects were submitted:

A $130 million replacement project. This would see a new school built in front of the current D.P. Todd building.
A $90 million renovation and addition project to the existing school to modernize it.

The replacement building would be an improvement that most who attend D.P. Todd, both students and staff alike, believe is much needed.

“We have a really amazing community at D.P. Todd, and the building doesn’t necessarily reflect how hard the teachers, the administrators, and the students, work to make this an inclusive learning environment,” said Emma McLellan, D.P. Todd’s 2025/26 Valedictorian.

“I think it would be a huge benefit, it’s a really nice community at D.P. Todd and we really do lack some of the spaces to continue to create that. We don’t have a really good multi-purpose space or space where we can gather students, whether it be at lunchtime or to have larger groups of students working on something or learning about something,” said D.P. Todd’s Principal Christa Barnes.

The new replacement school would address many key areas for a school that is nearing 50 years of age, as it was founded in 1978.

“That would involve constructing a 900-student school and it would provide more space, more classroom space, more electives, a larger gym, multi-purpose room, and obviously second floor accessibility needs would be met with an elevator,” Apolczer said.

Capacity is a particularly big concern, as D.P. Todd currently has capacity for around 750-800 students, but next year the student population is expected to be 842.

“The school lacks the space, it lacks the standards for space. For classroom, it lacks the elective space,” Apolczer said.

“There’s not really a cohesive place where people hang out. Students will go to the gym or to the library, but the bulk of students are sort of just lining the hallways or finding pockets of space to sit on the floor,” Barnes said.

“The gym is not ideal for sporting events at all. It’s very small, it’s just overall not the best space,” McLellan added.

The space concerns, beyond the ones raised above, also mean that students could be missing out on potential electives.

“I have had to make some decisions around that, because we don’t necessarily have the space, or if somebody is interested or students are interested in a different type of an elective, and we have somebody that could teach it, I don’t have the proper space for that,” Barnes said.

One of the biggest concerns? Natural lighting. Both staff and students say the lack of windows in the building do lead to a less-than-optimal learning environment.

“It feels very like you’re in a closed box, there’s no light, you just feel very closed in,” McLellan said.

“If you go for a walk outside or you’re able to be near some natural light, it usually does help in those moments,” Barnes said, regarding studies surrounding positive mental health benefits regarding natural light.

CKPG News reached out to the Ministry of Infrastructure regarding a potential replacement project for D.P. Todd, and received this statement:

“Students deserve to learn and grow in healthy, safe and supportive learning environments. We recognize the ongoing challenges with capacity, and we understand how important a new school building is for the community. We want to thank School District 57 for its strong advocacy and dedication to students.The Ministry of Infrastructure continues to work closely with the school district to identify and prioritize capital needs as part of our ongoing commitment to students and communities. All capital projects, including this one, will continue to be reviewed carefully through the provincial capital planning process.”

The Ministry also provided several statistics surrounding funding for SD57, being:

Since 2017, Government has invested more than $45 million through minor capital programs to support critical infrastructure upgrades across SD57 (Prince George).
For the 25/26 school year, SD57 is receiving nearly $1.3 million in funding through the School Enhancement Program (SEP) and more than $4.6 million in funding through the Annual Facilities Grant (AFG) for a total of $5.9 million to support critical infrastructure upgrades across the school district.

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by Tommy Osborne

SD57 hoping this the year D.P. Todd finally gets much needed replacement

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