Bruce Elementary, just blocks away from Joyce-Collingwood Station, has faced multiple closure and redevelopment attempts over the past 15 years. Here’s a summary of the timeline:
2010 ➡️ Proposed closure
2016 ➡️ Proposed closure
2023 ➡️ Proposed subdivision of a large portion of the school’s field (called the “Bruce Field”)
2025 ➡️ Victory as of October 1, 2025 for Save Bruce Field
In June 2023, the community united to Save Bruce Field. The field is the only soccer field within the catchment, serving about 1,290 youth according to the VSB’s youth population open data. This is a safe place for children to play in the rapidly growing Transit Oriented area of Joyce–Collingwood Station. The community showed overwhelming support to keep the field, with 2,500 petition signatures and more than 300 signs throughout the neighbourhood to Save Bruce Field.
The VSB suspended the public engagement for the sale/lease of the field. Our community has claimed victory and declared that “We Saved Bruce Field“. We declared that we won because we didn’t stand on the sidelines. We took a stand for what mattered, and we made a change.
Together, we showed our children and each other that when you build your case on facts, stay persistent, and rally a community of support, real change is possible.
When we say “We Saved Bruce Field,” we mean more than protecting a field. We are also defending the right of youth to safe places to play, safeguarding the future of public education, and upholding the principle that local schools are the heart of a complete neighbourhood.
Saving Bruce Field was truly a team effort. While we won this game, our work is not done. There’s more work to do to build a complete community in our rapidly growing area.
To download a copy of the Save Bruce Field Report, click here.