By Tyler Waugh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Irish Loop
Jeff Marshall could not believe the state of disrepair of the St. Kevin’s Junior High gymnasium in the Goulds when his oldest son started attending the school this past fall.
Leaks that sometimes require buckets to catch the water; moisture that seeps through the walls, and a potential mould and structural integrity issues that Marshall said elevated his concern for the 250 students and staff that use the gym.
“They can’t keep paint on the walls because water seeps directly through,” he said.
Marshall said conditions have deteriorated since damages from a 2003 fire were not properly remediated, and he was dismayed to learn that a potential fix to the ongoing problems was still two years out. He said the province needs to do something this summer.
“The engineering is done – contractors have been there to check it out. This could be addressed next week it they decided to. Two years … this is not a tenable solution,” Marshall said, adding that there had been some fundraising efforts to fix the gym floor.
“But we’re well beyond just a floor for the safe use of the gym moving forward,” he added.
Janelle Simms, media relations for Transportation and Infrastructure, stated that further investigation has expanded the scope of work to a full replacement of the building envelope in the older section, including siding, windows, and doors.
“Design work is underway, with tendering expected this fall and construction planned to begin in spring 2027, with completion in 2028,” she said about the current project timeline.
Marshall, meanwhile, has started a petition that already made its way to the provincial legislature, with Waterford Valley MHA Jamie Korab presenting it in early June, outlining that the students and teachers are faced with ongoing health and safety issues due to the frequent leaks and structural concerns in the gym.
Korab agreed with Marshall that the two-year timeline communicated to parents needs to be expedited and urged Ferryland MHA Loyola O’Driscoll and Infrastructure Minister Barry Petten to take quicker action to address the state of the gym.
Petten responded by saying that he spoke with officials that morning and they are currently trying to ‘connect the dots’ on a number of outstanding issues that have been raised over the years.
“We are working on it,” Petten said in response to Korab. “Whatever’s needed to be done will get done.”
Simms said the department reviewed recent photos of the school gym exterior, alongside images taken after the 2003 fire, and confirmed that the black markings on the foundation were not present at that time. “The markings have been attributed to more recent roof runoff,” she said in response to some assertions that the black marks are remnants from the fire.
St. Kevin’s Junior High School has students in grades 6 – 8.
