The City of Dryden will soon have 70 new affordable and safe child care spaces.
That’s the assertion from Kenora District Services Board Chief Administrative Officer Henry Wall.
Wall says the additional space will come from their purchase of the Children’s Resource Centre and the reconstruction of the old Pinewood School property.
40 of the 70 spaces will be located at the new and improved building on Albert Street.
Wall says there will be capital upgrades and considerable renovations at that site over the coming weeks.
The other 30 are geared towards single Indigenous mothers who are enrolled in the Homeward Bound program at the Pinewood site.
In total, Wall anticipates a full-time staff of 19 to 20 people at both locations to start.
Wall stresses this is just the first step to address what he calls a critical need for more affordable and safe child care spaces in Dryden.
Wall says there is a huge, unmet need in this community, noting there are families who can’t return to work because they have no access to child care.
Over the past couple of years, the province has moved child care spaces into community schools to streamline services.
