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.
25-24
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.
I haven’t been in that part of Copperwood to see if there is active construction, but all construction needs permits from the city before projects begin, so if that is almost complete, as you say, the building inspectors who signed the permits would have followed city policies would they not?
I guess I should take a drive and see!
Correction – I had the wrong address and should have confirmed it. It is the building over by Tim’s. The address in Copperwood is for a different development project.
I also see that they were additional needs that people requested for the service, so the company is asking for changes to facilitate those needs.
I do believe this will benefit the community!
yup, typical city obfuscation and dirty practice.
that noted, it is a great idea as it meets a pressing need. however, other than very small home based businesses, businesses should not be forced upon people in neighbourhoods that are residential. changing a residential zone to anything other should require a a very open and transparent process whereby the majority of residents affected determine such a change.
There are many shift workers in this city, including medical staff, police, fire and EMS who would benefit from 24 hour childcare and as long as they staff have the proper vetting and credentials I cannot see why this would not be a good idea.
It is also important, as stated, that those with children with disabilities, can have a place for their children in those times when they need a break, so they can re-charge and de-stress so they can give their child the loving care they need.
We are a 24/7 world now and it just makes sense!
I have no issue with Lethbridge needing this type of facility.
What concerns me is this building is almost built, advertised by the owners as a 24/7 child respite facility and only now is the city looking at amending a bylaw to allow this type of facility. Certainly the owners would not have spent all that money to build the structure without some assurance from council it would be allowed. Why the dog and pony show by the city about amendments or did the builders just take a gamble to build first then ask for permission?