The Alberta government has shortlisted three qualified groups to deliver five new high schools through a public-private partnership (P3).
The groups invited to participate in the request for proposals (RFP) are:
- Alberta Partnership for Learning (Graham Design Builders, GEC Architecture).
- Concert-Bird Partners (Bird Construction, BR2 Architecture).
- Plenary-Maple High Schools (Maple Reinders Constructors, Stantec Architecture).
“We have talented, experienced teams right here in Alberta who can help build the schools Albertans need,” said Prasad Panda, Alberta’s Minister of Infrastructure. “I am confident that this process will provide savings for Alberta taxpayers while ensuring our students have world-class schools to learn and grow in. Next fall, we will have a successful P3 contract in place with shovels in the ground for these five much-needed high schools.”
The five new high schools included in the P3 bundle are:
- Blackfalds – Grade 9-12 school, Wolf Creek Public Schools.
- Edmonton – Grade 10-12 school in the southeast, Edmonton Public Schools.
- Edmonton – Grade 10-12 school in Heritage Valley, Edmonton Catholic Schools.
- Langdon – Grade 7-12 school, Rocky View Schools.
- Leduc – Grade 10-12 school, Black Gold School Division.
The RFP process will be completed in July 2021. Proposals will be examined for each consortium’s capacity to complete the project and to ensure its bid provides Alberta taxpayers with good value for dollars spent.
A contract with the successful P3 consortium is expected to be in place by the end of September 2021. The five new high schools are anticipated to open in September 2024 with a total student capacity of about 6,938 students.
“I am pleased to see these five high school projects continue to move forward,” said Adriana LaGrange, Alberta’s Minister of Education. “These future schools will provide modern learning environments for their students, and I am excited that we are another step closer towards getting shovels in the ground.”
The five new high schools are part of the more than $10 billion infrastructure spending announced as part of Alberta’s Recovery Plan.
