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On January 22-23, 2023, when Minister Singh came to Kamloops to visit the Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education, the Board provided Minister Singh with a brief in which the board advocated for a new elementary school in Pineview Valley and funding for the site needed for Aberdeen Secondary School. In that brief, the following key messages were emphasized:

We also shared that we urgently need a small financial contribution ($7.5 M) in this February 2023 budget to purchase the site for the Secondary School in Aberdeen.

• In 5 years, students in southwest Kamloops will need a secondary school.

• The current high schools are anticipated to be at 146% capacity.

• On April 11, 2022, we had written to Minister Whiteside to share that we have a one-time chance to buy the only existing land available in Aberdeen for a price of $6.1M, prior to December 31, 2022. We still have this option, but there is immense pressure on the owner to sell, and the cost of the land has increased.

• Our Board has the required School Site Acquisition Charge system in place with the City of Kamloops. As of February 17, 2022, the School District had $10,948 in School Site Acquisition Charge funds to contribute to the purchase of the site. As of January 18, 2023, the school district has received approximately $163,000.

• Securing this land is crucial to support our current and future secondary capacity needs in the southwest of Kamloops.