Friday September 8, 2023 | COLWOOD, BC [Updated September 11, 2023]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Sooke School District 62 (SD62) took advantage of great summer-like weather to do a bit of a photo shoot with Colwood mayor and some councillors, on the new multi-use sport court at Dunsmuir Middle School
SD62 calls it “an example of our partnership is the new multi-use sport court at Dunsmuir Middle School”. It looks like basketball, football and soccer are among the sports that will played on the new surface.
“The court was completed a few weeks ago and it’s already a hit with students and community members alike,” said SD62 in a Tweet (X) with photos this afternoon.
“The Sooke School District is pleased to partner with the City of Colwood to invest in an asset that can be enjoyed by the community and students alike for many years to come,” said Amanda Dowhy, SD62 chair, in a statement received by Island Social Trends.
“We appreciate our strong relationship with the City of Colwood and will seek to continue working together on projects that can benefit the community and school district as a whole,” she said.
Sport court tech:
The sport court has a painted surface, not rubberized like some of the newer ones in Langford. The primary lines are for tennis and pickleball, with three point lines around the basketball nets.
The original court was designed for tennis when Dunsmuir was a secondary school; the sizing of the new court footprint is unchanged from that.
SD62 provided the land and project management and will be responsible for ongoing maintenance.
Who can use the court:
The use agreement between the City of Colwood and the SD62 gives access to the sport court for school use only during weekdays from 8 am to 5 pm, from September through June. It is available for public use during evenings, weekends and throughout the summer.
The multi-use court sees frequent use from community members for tennis, basketball and picketball.
About the school:
Dunsmuir Middle School (for students in Grades 6 to 8) is located on Painter Avenue in Colwood, close by to Colwood City Hall and Colwood Fire Hall. The principal is Mark Kaercher; vice principals are Chris Smyth and Alexis McKean.
This year is the school has 739 students — including (as of day one back to school) approximately 201 new Grade 6 students, the return of about 259 Grade 7 students and about 249 Grade 8 students.
Media coverage:
Media was not invited to the sport court announcement photo shoot, but Island Social Trends continues to report on SD62 news up close.
From the photos provided, it appears that SD62 was represented by Board Chair Amanda Dowhy and two trustees from the Belmont Zone (west shore) Cendra Beaton and Trudy Spiller, along with Superintendent Scott Stinson, Deputy Superintendent Paul Block, and Secretary-Treasurer Harold Cull. City of Colwood Mayor Doug Kobayashi and Councillor Ian Ward also attended.
===== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends Editor Mary P Brooke has been reporting on SD62 and the west shore since 2014 (previously in the West Shore Voice News weekly print/PDF publication, 2014-2020).
School district news is, we believe, important to the broader community. | SD62 News Section
