The Vancouver School Board has officially announced the name for the long-awaited new elementary school in the city's Coal Harbour neighbourhood. The facility, which will be known as Seaside Elementary, is scheduled to welcome students in the summer of 2025.
A School by the Water: Honouring Indigenous Heritage
Located at 482 Broughton Street, the three-storey building overlooks the marina and comes with a rich cultural backdrop. In a significant gesture, the school was also gifted with names from the local First Nations.
The Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh Nations bestowed the name cəw̓as, meaning "facing out onto the water, facing away from the shore." Additionally, the Squamish Nation named it Ch’elxwá7elch Skwuláw̓txw, or Lost Lagoon school, acknowledging its proximity to the Stanley Park lagoon.
Addressing Urban Growth and School Overcrowding
The new school is a critical addition to Vancouver's downtown core, where existing educational facilities are severely overcapacity. Once open, Seaside Elementary is expected to operate at near capacity, with 305 of its 317 student spaces already allocated.
Most of these students are currently being accommodated at the overcrowded Lord Roberts and Lord Roberts Annex schools. The project also includes 69 spaces for before- and after-school care, 65 child-care spaces for children up to age five, and 60 affordable rental homes.
New Catchment Boundaries and Future Needs
To manage student distribution, the school board has approved new catchment boundaries. This reconfiguration primarily affects families in the northwestern part of the Elsie Roy Elementary catchment in Yaletown, who will now be reassigned to Lord Roberts.
This move is a direct response to the intense pressure on downtown schools. Elsie Roy is currently at 114 per cent capacity, while nearby šxʷwəq̓ʷəθət Crosstown Elementary is at 121 per cent and Lord Roberts is at 108 per cent.
Trustee Suzie Mah emphasized that this is a sign of the times, stating, "Vancouver’s growing and we are increasing in density. Down the road, we need the land, we need to keep our land, and there may be new schools that are needed."
The school's construction was part of a unique 2018 deal with B.C. Hydro, which involved building an underground substation at the Lord Roberts Annex site in exchange for funding for both the Coal Harbour school and a future replacement school for Lord Roberts Annex.
The initial completion date for Seaside Elementary was delayed from this fall due to supply-chain issues, labour shortages, and site constraints, but it is now firmly on track for a summer 2025 opening.
