Kelowna child care provider Building Blocks is closing both of its locations

The search for child care in Kelowna just got even more difficult.

Building Blocks Educare announced Wednesday night that it will be closing both of its locations in the coming weeks and months.

The Gordon campus will close on Feb. 28, while the Sutherland campus has been acquired by ProducKIDvity and will change hands on April 1.

Owned by Kelowna moms Laura Forbes and Brie Elson, Building Blocks has been providing child care for nearly 15 years.

They say they have been actively exploring potential relocation options since their leased property on Gordon Drive was sold unexpectedly in the summer of 2021.

“We realized that losing our building was virtually the same as losing our business and we would be starting all over again, but we’d be starting all over again in a very different economic climate and a very different industry,” explained Forbes.

“Given the uncertainty around universal child care, we can’t confidently plan for the future when we don’t know what the universal childcare model will ultimately look like and how we, as private operators, will fit into it.”

Alex Carnio, founder and CEO of ProducKIDvity, said that quality child care is at the heart of their business and they are thrilled to expand their presence in Kelowna beyond their current Leon Avenue location.

“Given the trust and relationships ProducKIDvity fosters with families, we have full confidence that the expansion will increase quality child care in the local market and offer more choice to Kelowna families,” she said.

Families with children currently at Building Blocks Sutherland campus will have first right of refusal to receive child care from ProducKIDvity and there will be no interruption of care.

The provider said they are actively working to secure space for the Building Blocks families who will be without care once the Gordon campus closes.

In the meantime, Forbes said the decision to cease operations will have a tremendous impact on their families and staff.

“It has truly been the honour of our lives to have worked with all our Building Blocks families and staff to build a childcare program and community we are so incredibly proud of and grateful for,” noted Forbes.

“It is heartbreaking to see it come to an end and to know that this decision will be affecting our families and staff so significantly.”