In a move that shocked parents, RMOW Council decided not to renew the lease for the Whistler Waldorf School at closed-door meeting on June 25. The school has been given until June 2025 to vacate.
This decision will have far-reaching consequences, affecting 170 K-12 students, 134 families, closing 45-50 daycare spots, and resulting in the loss of 45 jobs. In a letter to council, the Whistler Waldorf School Board Trustees have expressed their deep disappointment and confusion over the abrupt decision, especially after a year of what they described as productive discussions with municipal staff aimed at securing a long-term agreement.
“We are deeply surprised, saddened, and confused by this unexpected and sudden decision,” the trustees wrote in a letter to the council. They were hopeful, they wrote, about developing a long-term facility that would serve not only the school’s educational and daycare needs but also provide community amenities such as meeting spaces, art studios, and recreational facilities accessible to the public during non-school hours.
The trustees revealed that municipal staff had left the closed-door meeting with instructions to negotiate a lease with a firm end date of June 2025 with no room for extensions, rent reductions, or other concessions that would help the school transition to a new site.
In their letter, the trustees sought clarification on several points, including whether the council members were aware of the profound impact this decision would have on students, families, and staff and if RMOW had considered the broader community implications. As many as 45 jobs will be lost as a result of the decision.
The trustees are asking the council to reconsider their decision and work with the school to find a viable solution. They propose either allowing the school to remain at the Spruce Grove site with a reduced footprint or supporting establishing a new school and daycare site on other municipal land, extending the current lease until a permanent site is secured.
The trustees emphasized the critical nature of this situation, noting that the closure of the school and its daycare programs would exacerbate the existing childcare and education crisis in the community.
“We firmly believe that solutions are within reach,” the trustees stated. “Shutting down existing facilities only exacerbates the problem. We urge the council to collaborate with us to tackle this pressing crisis. Failing to seize this opportunity will be a regrettable oversight, but by acting, we can make significant strides in alleviating our community’s childcare challenges.”
The Whistler Waldorf School Board Trustees call for meaningful dialogue with the council to resolve this issue and ensure the community’s needs are adequately met. They encourage community members to stay informed and participate in upcoming meetings to express their concerns and support for the school.
Wendy Barber says
GAGANDEEP GHUMAN…..yes it is a sad and stressful time for the Waldorf School. However this is a good decision for the rest of the overall community of Whistler. There are many other organizations in this community struggling to find space for programs and events, ie: Rotary, MAC, WEE Society, youth groups and the 55+ community.
Waldorf has had 23 years to find a permanent facility and their board has let them down by not doing so.
It is time for these facilities to be available for the whole of the community.
Jo Chatterton says
The information on some of the many sites that have been explored over the duration of the schools history are now publicly available. Most notably the $400,000 the school had raised as pledges for a very large sustainable community centre that the pandemic eventually caused to come to a halt.
The plans that were presented in good faith to stay on site, on a smaller footprint, included the availability of the field house for the community plus new bookable spaces as identified as needed for the community. (The school has always packed up and vacated each summer.)
It was because the Whistler Waldorf school was in fact, actively working to create additional community spaces this was a surprise decision by council. Perhaps local organizations who need space could align and support the efforts of the Waldorf school who only ever intended to continue to contribute to the community, most recently by planning to build new spaces to be used by everyone.
whistlerguy says
the council want whistler to be an area families come to and invest in and then does this, the Karen acting mayor shut this down so she could probably host events in it, shameful.