Day Care Further Develops Downtown
A group of academics, business people and childcare professionals have been coming together in an effort to bring better childcare options to downtown Buffalo. Believing that the downtown core is the key to revitalizing our entire region, the group has been discussing childcare as an economic development tool, another way to breathe life onto our city streets.
“People don’t realize that part of development is to create an economic environment downtown for people to come to, and part of that is creating quality day care,” said Rocco Termini. “It’s important for creating the environment we need to expand the employment base downtown.”
The first step for downtown childcare is Termini’s development of the Webb building on Pearl Street (above), which will feature the first installment of Marybeth DeJohn’s daycare, Vincennes Academy. Marybeth has been working in Buffalo childcare for 10 years with her company, Personal Care Therapeutics, which practices pediatric therapy in a child’s natural environment – be it a home or a daycare. Realizing through her work that many daycare facilities cannot accommodate children with special needs, Marybeth saw the need to develop a quality daycare program that caters to children of all developmental abilities.
“What we’re trying to offer is a level of early childhood care and education that is of the highest quality and that overcomes a lot of societal barriers, in the sense that we as a community haven’t yet come together to offer fully integrated programs,” Marybeth said.
Often parents of children with developmental disabilities are forced to remain out of the workforce because there is no viable, affordable childcare option. Marybeth hopes to establish her daycare centers as places where parents will feel comfortable and happy leaving their children, no matter their developmental ability. Her staff will consist of highly trained specialists in early childhood education, as well as in all areas of special needs.
“We’ll provide exceptional care and education for typically developing children, as well as for children with special needs,” Marybeth said.
The daycare center will be a modern spectacle in a historic downtown building, as with most of Termini’s downtown development – including the current offices of Personal Care. But you can credit this “outrageous” design to Marybeth, who said Termini embraced her ideas for the space. Termini called their partnership “the perfect marriage.”
“I’ve always had a very particular vision,” Marybeth said. “I want it to be very dynamic, exciting and respectful to children. They deserve to be in an elegant and luxurious and phenomenal space. I want it to look and feel special.”
The center in the Webb building is just the first of many to come for Marybeth, who is planning on making Vincennes a brand of high-quality daycare throughout the city. Look for future partnerships between this excited entrepreneur and inexhaustible developer. The center is expected to open next September to provide for around 140 children, aged six weeks to five years, with a very low staff to child ratio.
“The project is nice all the way around, especially to get the families that do reside outside the city comfortable with the city,” Marybeth said. “To let them know that there are wonderful, viable places in the city that they can be a part of.”
THis is the kind of thinking that has been missing in WNY for a long time
Steel, if you're in town this weekend you should try to come to Pecha Kucha @ Soundlab on Saturday!
This is just yet another logical step of redeveloping downtown.
Steel, If you are in town this weekend you should come to Pecha Kucha on Saturday!
great news...for many reasons.
PLUS it may have saved this beautiful building from being a parking lot someday...lets hope the business grows and the buildings stays around.
What an astute observation. Thanks, Anna.
The best part of downtown day care that you didn't mention? That bunches of kids will grow up going downtown every day as a normal part of life and will know from first hand experience to reject all the urban scare stories.
More downtown elementary schools! More daycares! More kids anf their parents woven into the fabric of normal, every day downtown life!
Is the entire building day care or just the first floor?
Just the first floor, No Money- No Style. The upper floors will be transformed into new living spaces.
Actually our conceptual plans have the day care utilizing two levels by absorbing the basement into the useable area. it will be a very unique space. This type of planning will allow us to take advantage of the fenestration on the western face of the building. Marybeth deserves all of the credit since she is really on the leading edge of what we hope is a trend.