Wait goes on for Armstrong Creek West school

A PRIMARY school proposed for Armstrong Creek is still yet to be built, and the state opposition have accused Labor Member for Western Victoria Gayle Tierney of breaking a promise.

As reported in this newspaper in May 2016, Ms Tierney announced funding for the Armstrong Creek West Primary School, to be built in Unity Drive, was part of $54 million for schools in the 2016/7 budget and the school would be open in about 18 months.

According to the Victorian School Building Authority’s website, a project timeline for the school in the Armstrong Mt Duneed estate is “to be determined”, and the project is in the “land acquisition” phase.

Liberal MPs Andrew Katos and Tim Smith visited the undeveloped site last week, and said even if construction began today, the school would not open for at least 13 months.

“I spoke to the developers last week, and the land has not even been acquired,” Mr Katos said.

“No-one’s going to nitpick over a month or two of the school being built, but there’s nothing happening.

“This is a clear breach of the Labor Party’s commitment to build a school for the Armstrong Creek community.”

Mr Smith said 50 new schools needed to be built across Victoria by 2021, and about 300 by the mid-2030s.

“When people get told there’s going to be a school and there’s no school… and this sort of backlog of infrastructure takes place, you wonder why people are pretty cynical about Daniel Andrews and the Labor Party’s view about decentralisation and planning for future growth.”

In response, Ms Tierney said she had been working closely with Minister for Education James Merlino “to make sure we get the new school Armstrong Creek deserves”.

“Unlike Andrew Katos, who hasn’t achieved anything in three years, I won’t stop advocating for the Armstrong Creek community.”