Child care facility project in the works

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This article was published 20/01/2020 (2319 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Margaret Park could become home to a new child care facility as soon as September 2021, if all things go according to plan.

Physical education teachers Ryden Marko and Craig Malaschuk said they are working with Vince Leah Community Centre (1295 Salter St.) to hopefully upgrade and enhance the building to transition it into a safe active-living and educational space for children.

“What our goal is to create a facility where being active and learning work together to create success,” Marko said. “We know that there’s a need for child care in the city so we decided to expand and look in to doing a child care program for ages two to six.”

The program would offer spots for 32 to 40 children and early registration is now open.

Marko and Malaschuk are instructors at KidFit 60, an after-school program at Garden City Community Centre for children between the ages of five and 12, which is in its second year.

The child care facility they’d like to establish at Vince Leah would reflect aspects of this program.

“I think the whole purpose behind it is we want to create a culture where the more active the kids are and the more they are doing, the better off they are in their learning,” Malaschuk said.

The pair said they would fund the project themselves and rent the facility during the day when the community club is not using it.

“We’re working with (Vince Leah board members) to create a facility to do upgrades and improvements to the community club to meet the benefits of our child care program and the people of the community,” Marko said.

“We want to be able to have that facility open for them when we aren’t using it so they can take advantage of the stuff that we are putting into it,” Malaschuk added.

Changes would include enhancing the 3,000-square-foot gymnasium, adding artificial removable turf, safety flooring, and a dance studio.

The pair explained there are many variables which this project is dependent upon and the operation is still in the preliminary stages.

“We’re trying to give a sports movement program as well as a premier learning centre.

“There’s obviously a big process that we need to go through in order to make this happen. We need to make sure that all the permits are pulled correctly for any of the upgrades that we’re doing, so that’s why we’ve started very early,” Marko said.

For more information, visit https://www.kidfit60.com/