Public hearing set on 24-hour childcare proposal
By Lethbridge Herald on July 15, 2025.
Herald photo by Al Beeber
The site of the Agyapa daycare and proposed 24-hour care facility is seen under construction. A public hearing is being held Tuesday at 3 p.m. in council chambers to address a land use bylaw amendment for the property.Al Beeber
Lethbridge Herald
City council today will hear an application for a land use bylaw amendment that will allow the creation of a 24-hour child care and respite facility for youth with disabilities at the site of a westside daycare that is under construction.
If the project gets the green light, it will be the first of its kind in Lethbridge, allowing parents on shift work to have overnight care for their children.
The application also calls for the land use to allow a meeting hall space so the applicant can rent it out to help with financial sustainability while fostering community engagement.
A public hearing is scheduled on the matter at 3 p.m. in council chambers.
In a submission to council, applicant Carolyn Agyapong of Agyapa Care Ltd. says the project will address “the urgent need for flexible 24-hour child care and respite support in Lethbridge.”Â
The facility will provide specialized support for children with disabilities and create what Agyapong calls an “inclusive, high-quality environment that serves all families.”
A presentation to counci states that the city has 1,896 licenced child care spaces but there is a shortfall of about 600 and no providers exist in southern Alberta who can provide 24-hour services.
The application says the facility will expand affordable and accessible care options, targeting 210 licenced spaces while supporting working parents and shift workers, reducing economic barriers to care.
It also says the facility will provide much-needed services for families who have children with disability and will enhance early childhood development through integrated, quality programming.
The application also states the facility will create jobs and stimulate economic growth.
In a letter to the City’s planning and design department, Agyapong wrote that her operation is “dedicated to providing inclusive, accessible, and high-quality care for children of all abilities, including those requiring specialized supports funded through the Family Support for Children with Disabilities (FSCD) program and the Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) program.”
The facility, says her letter, would in some ways function in a similar way as a group home by offering 24- to 48-hour respite care services and a setting where children with disabilities would receive specialized care.
It will also address childcare shortages by offering extended hours and specialized care.
A letter of support from Nichole Furman, manager of Disability Services South which delivers programming to children and adults with disabilities so they can live and participate in their communities, says many of its clients “would greatly benefit from the addition of respite services in the community as there is an ongoing need for service providers to fill this void.”
Furman adds that Lethbridge and area has 996 Family Support for Children with Disabilities family agreements that could be eligible for respite services and 27 Persons with Developmental Disabilities family managed agreements that are eligible for respite.”
A support letter from Krystal Churcher of ACE Alberta states that Agyapa Care is “positioned to deliver comprehensive childcare services that extend beyond traditional daycare hours, providing support around-the-clock, including weekends and overnight care. . .
“Immediate benefits to families include the provision of reliable, professional care during atypical hours, significantly reducing stress and enhancing family stability.Â
The overnight respite care, particularly the proposed 24 to 48-hour blocks, would grant parents and guardians crucial time for rest, errands, or emergencies, thereby positively impacting family well-being.”
ACE Alberta is part of a national coalition of Canadian childcare operators.
The purpose of Bylaw 6491- Land Use Bylaw Amendment regarding 2401 Westside Drive West is to add the uses of Group Home and Club/Community Hall as permitted uses which the existing Direct Control district presently doesn’t allow.Â
The use of Group Home will allow for the the respite and overnight care facility to be combined with a traditional daycare while Clubs/Community Hall will allow for an event or gathering space, says a report from senior community planner Tyson Boylan.
“These two proposed uses are a relatively unique arrangement that was not considered as part of the original DC Bylaw 6145 and no other respite care and overnight child care facility, such as what is proposed, currently exists in the city. That being said, these new Uses are still compatible with the other land uses that can be developed on the parcel,” says Boylan’s report..
A second public hearing on Bylaw 6489 – Land Use Bylaw Amendment regarding 2425 30 St. W . is being staged to seek approval to amend the land use classification of that site to Mixed Density Residential and Comprehensively Planned Low Density Residential which will allow for residential development deemed that is in compliance with the West Lethbridge Phase II area structure plan and the Copperwood 2 outline plan. The proposed amendment will allow for continued residential development as outlined in the Copperwood plan, says a report to council by community planner Kurt Fisher.
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The building is almost complete and they are just asking for bylaw amendments and meeting hall approval. This is very presumptuous of the business. The city should delay approval just to make them sweat as these last minute changes forces the city into a corner. It’s great to see that empty space being filled but builders and businesses should not be so arrogant.