'We’re excited, eager and ready;' Cambridge child care providers get good news

When Tender Loving Daycare moved into its location at 99 Beechwood Dr., it was meant to be a temporary solution provided by the Region of Waterloo until a permanent home could be found.

After a significant search that yielded no results, the region is in the process of making it permanent.

Opened in 1999, TLD was formerly located at Knox's Galt Presbyterian Church but when it was sold to Grace Bible Church during the pandemic, its lease wasn't renewed.

"We were searching for somewhere to go and so we advocated hard to the Region of Waterloo," Tracey Rees, supervisor of administration and human resources at TLD, said.

"We said you're going to lose these 45 spaces on this side of town, so the region decided we could come in under a temporary order. They were adamant that it could only be temporary. We had to keep searching."

In the two years since, Rees and her team searched tirelessly for a new location but continuously came up short. With many regulations required to open a child care centre, no spaces they looked into were suitable.

At one point, they found a barn in Preston that had the potential to be renovated but an environmental study showed the land was contaminated.

With no options and time running out, the issue was brought before regional council earlier this year and that's when Rees received a phone call saying TLD could stay in its current building.

"Council decided these could be used for child care. We haven't completely signed into our lease but it's in the works and that's where it's headed."

Tender Loving Daycare isn't the only centre that's received good news lately.

The YWCA Cambridge has officially broken ground on its 88-space location on Wesley Boulevard in South Galt that's scheduled to open in 2026.

"We’re excited, eager and ready to get this project going," Rosalind Gunn, director of communications and advocacy for the YWCA Cambridge, said.

"While construction happens, our child care department will be busy planning procurement of everything required for the centre; large appliances, furniture, play-based equipment and materials."

Both Rees and Gunn acknowledge the significant need for spaces in the city.

The YWCA alone has a waitlist well over 1,000 families, a total that's expected to grow with the Canada Wide Early Years and Child Care agreement that has cut the price of care and will eventually see the cost drop to $10 per day.

"Any new child care spaces is a huge win for this community," Gunn said.

"We know the immense benefits of early childhood education on child development, as well as the impact having access to it has on families, particularly women."

While the news of more spaces is encouraging, Rees points to TLD's recent experience as an example of the gaps that remain in trying to meet the demand.

She believes the decreased fees are a positive but more planning is needed to support the idea.

"When the federal government, with the province, decided to put the fees down, people came out of the woodwork because they could afford it," she said.

"They really put the cart before the horse. They should've created the spaces first and then created the need and all would've been good. The federal government needs to put more money into these programs."