Fort Saskatchewan residents can have their say next month on a plan to turn part of the Fort Station Mall into a hands-on learning hub for high school students. City council has called a public hearing for Tuesday, July 7, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. on a land use rule change that would allow Elk Island Public Schools to open a Heartland Skills and Learning Centre in the former Jump location downtown.
The proposal needs a bylaw tweak because the current zoning for the mall area does not include schools or educational facilities as an option, even on a case-by-case basis. Elk Island Public Schools, known as EIPS, has already signed a lease for the space and is asking the city to add public education as a discretionary use in the C5 Fort Mall Redevelopment District. If approved, the change would let council consider the school project on its own merits.
The skills centre would give students a chance to earn both high school and post-secondary credits through dual-credit programs in welding, healthcare aide, power engineering, skilled trades, and early childhood education. The plan comes as Fort Saskatchewan is the fastest-growing community within EIPS, with the latest figures showing 30,575 residents in 2025, up from 29,857 a year earlier. That growth is putting pressure on local schools, many of which are decades old and nearing capacity.
City planners say the idea lines up with long-term goals for the downtown. The Municipal Development Plan and Downtown Area Redevelopment Plan both encourage a mix of shops, housing, and community services in the core. The C5 district covers the mall site west of 108 Street, between 98 Avenue and 99 Avenue, where the old enclosed mall was mostly torn down starting in 2015 and replaced with street-facing stores. Adding a school to the area fits the vision of bringing more activity and people downtown.
Anyone who wants to speak at the hearing must register by noon on Monday, July 6. Residents can sign up by emailing [email protected] or calling 780-992-6200. People can participate in person or online through Webex, and written comments can also be sent in to become part of the public record. Council will consider all feedback before deciding whether to approve Bylaw C20-26.
Separately, EIPS has also received provincial money to build a new grade 7 to 12 replacement school in the Southridge neighbourhood, but the Heartland Skills Centre is a standalone project aimed at giving students real-world career training right in the heart of the city.
