Image: City of Mission / The City of Mission announced Monday that a 67-space child care and Child and Youth Excellence Hub broke ground in Mission Monday morning.

By Fraser Valley Today Staff

City of Mission

67-space child care centre, Child and Youth Excellence Hub break ground in Mission Monday

Jun 24, 2024 | 12:27 PM

MISSION — The City of Mission announced Monday (June 24) that a 67-space child care and Child and Youth Excellence Hub broke ground in Mission Monday morning.

The municipality says the project is a collaborative effort between Mission Association for Community Living, the B.C. government and the City of Mission. The goal behind the project is to bring much needed child care spaces for children with extra support needs, and provide important services for local families.

Construction of the child care centre will be funded by grants from the province’s ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund and UBCM (Union of B.C. Municipalities). The City of Mission sold MACL the land at a discounted price and offered project financing.

The first floor will be feature a child care centre that dovetails with Mission Association of Community Living’s stated goal of providing support to individuals with developmental disabilities, children who require extra support, and their families.

“We are thrilled to partner with the City of Mission and the Province of B.C. to open a 67-space child care centre and Child and Youth Excellence Hub,” said Dawn Hein, CEO of Mission Association for Community Living. “Our goal is to create an inclusive environment that meets the diverse needs of families in our community, ensuring every child has the opportunity to thrive.”

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The project materialized as a partnership between MACL and the City of Mission, with support from Pam Alexis, MLA for Abbotsford-Mission, and Bob D’Eith, MLA for Maple Ridge-Mission.

“Council is extremely proud to see this project moving forward,” said Mayor Paul Horn. “We have heard from our neighbours that there is a dramatic shortage of quality child care, and that there is a need to offer more services in the Cedar Valley area. We are very grateful for the opportunity to work with Mission Association for Community Living to ensure that this is a fully inclusive child care centre. The project would not have come together without the partnership and advocacy of our two MLAs, Pam Alexis and Bob D’Eith. Their help made all the difference in overcoming the many challenges involved in this project.”

Construction is expected to be completed next year.