Provincial election promises should result in a new high school being constructed in Pitt Meadows.
2020 was an election year, and the new education facility was a key election promise by Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows MLA Lisa Beare. The NDP government cabinet minister won a second term, as did Maple Ridge-Mission MLA Bob D’Eith.
The Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows school district is now working on a project definition report for Pitt Meadows secondary. This report will be submitted for funding consideration to the Ministry of Education in January, said spokesperson Irena Pochop.
Another part of that election promise was a new site to eventually build a new elementary school to serve the fast-growing Silver Valley neighbourhood in Maple Ridge. Again, the district is working on a project fact sheet for Silver Valley which will be submitted to the Ministry of Education in early 2021
Politics was front page news in the fall, after Premier John Horgan called a snap election for Oct. 24.
READ ALSO: Citing stability, B.C. Premier calls snap election for Oct. 24
The two local ridings were key battlegrounds, characterized as being up for grabs after both had gone from the BC Liberals to the NDP in 2016, and each week there were press conferences by Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson, or NDP Leader John Horgan or his health minister Adrian Dix.
Former Maple Ridge city councillor and SD42 school board trustee Cheryl Ashlie was selected by the Liberals to oppose Beare in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows. The sudden election call caught the BC Greens and other parties without a candidate to run in the riding.
Maple Ridge city councillor Chelsa Meadus got the Liberal nod to run for Maple Ridge-Mission against D’Eith. That race was also joined by the Green Party’s Matt Trenholm – a Langley resident and health care worker.
Beare beat Ashlie in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows with 63 per cent of the riding’s votes, compared with the Liberal candidate’s 37 per cent.
In Maple Ridge-Mission D’Eith took 55 per cent of the votes, Meadus 34 per cent and Trenholm 11 per cent.
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