After collecting feedback for nearly two months, Rocky View Schools has announced the preferred option for its new electoral boundaries, which will include six wards and eight trustees.
The current electoral boundaries consist of six wards and seven trustees. Within those boundaries Ward 4 covers Springbank and Bragg Creek, Ward 5 covers Westbrook and Bearspaw, and Ward 6 includes the Town of Cochrane. Each ward has one trustee with the exception of the City of Airdrie, which has two trustees.
The new option adds a ward for the City of Chestermere, and combines wards four and five. The change also results in one trustee for each ward, with the exception of the City of Airdrie, which will have three trustees.
Rocky View Schools is the fifth largest school board in the province with 22,000 students and 49 schools. In the last five years, the total population of the region has increased to 145,618 from 122,220. Those numbers include a one per cent population increase – 23,084 from 17,580 – in Ward 6 (Cochrane).
Consultation meetings were held in November and December, presenting four options for ward boundary changes – none of which were picked.
The new option was selected because it “meets the criteria set by the board and comes very close to meeting the population variance test.”
Before the new option is approved, the bylaw will have three readings this month and if it is unanimously supported on the third reading, it will be forwarded to the Minister of Education by March 1. For more information go to rockyview.ab.ca.
