Masi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Yellowknife Day Care Association. Their brand new child care building on 52nd Street is scheduled to open at the end of 2017. It is the latest accomplishment in YK Day Care's 36 years of service to Yellowknife families, and one which they have taken on without government assistance.
This building is the first that is purpose-built for child care in Yellowknife. It meets the highest standards of design and amenities. It will have three times the space and more than twice the capacity for youngsters: 32 babies, 56 preschoolers, and 20 children up to eight years old in an after-school program. The two-storey building will feature four nursery rooms, a multipurpose activity room, classrooms, a kitchen, preschooler rooms, as well as staff and administrative accommodations. Expanded facilities also bring increased employment, from 14 to 25 full- and part-time staff.
The opening should clear the waiting list of parents seeking child care, and will bring the YK Day Care after-school program back from its temporary home at Northern United Place. This project would not have been possible without the support of the volunteer board of directors, some of whom have already moved or are no longer within the board, but left a significant contribution for this project. They had the vision and, quite frankly, the guts to meet child care needs of their own initiative.
The territorial Department of Education, Culture and Employment has committed funding for some furnishings and equipment, and a special fundraising drive with the public will be mounted to complete the outfitting. The executive director of the YK Day Care describes the expansion as "a dream come true." Parents can continue to rely on the same top notch child care, in excellent new facilities that maximize child safety, care and development.
Please join me in saluting the Yellowknife Daycare Association's continuing contribution to the quality of life in this community. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Members' statements. Member for Deh Cho.
