Richmond’s City Centre elementary marks opening as it builds a new school culture

Richmond’s City Centre elementary officially celebrated its opening Thursday with an Indigenous song, welcoming speeches and a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The school opened Sept. 8 with about 200 students in Grades 1 to 7.

The property was bought from a private owner last year for $60 million and has undergone renovations for the past year. Originally built in the late 1950s, it previously operated for several years as the private Pythagoras Academy. Before that, it was Harry Eburne elementary, which closed in the late 1980s.

Grade 5/6 teacher Harvey Rollins said teachers who chose to join the new school have a “rare opportunity” to build its culture. He said the classrooms and hallways will come to hold friendships, laughter, mistakes, successes and memories, and that the school community can keep trying to do what it believes is best for students even when things are not perfect.

When Harry Eburne elementary closed, the site was traded for several other parcels of land used to create three new elementary schools in the Richmond School District.