YMCA & Essentia Partnerships Bridges Gap with Childcare & Housing Needs
DULUTH, Minn. — Duluth is in need of over one-thousand spaces reserved for childcare. Although this problem is far from reaching a complete solution the Duluth Area Family YMCA and Essentia Health are adding more than 100 childcare spots in the Central Hillside neighborhood.
Duluth Area Family YMCA has committed more than $1 million and Essentia Health more than $2.6 million towards Hillside Early Childhood Learning Center. The new facility will be a part of the Brae View Senior Housing project.
The two projects will bring 72 affordable apartments for seniors in the Hillside neighborhood. The first floor will be reserved for the new early childcare facility, which will encourage intergenerational activities between children and seniors.
“We do some intergenerational programming at our other locations, but this will really lend itself to everything from opportunities to exercise and have wellness together, to opportunities to read books and do art together,” said President & CEO of the Duluth Area Family YMCA Sara Cole. “And you can imagine what that brings to children who have sort of grandparent age folks to interact with, and senior citizens who now have this amazing group of young folks to see and interact with each day.”
For the last 5 years, the Duluth Chamber of Commerce has been looking for new ways to combat workforce and childcare shortages. They say that the announcement of this project is only a starting point for supporting our youngest community members.
“When people are looking to come to Duluth, they want the quality of life. They know we have excellent job opportunities here. They look at schools and they look at childcare. We are fortunate to have good schools available. We don’t have great child care available. And so that is a part of the calculus as well when they’re looking to relocate to our area,” said Matt Baumgartner, the president of the Duluth Chamber of Commerce. “That’s a really hard hurdle to get over when you’re moving into a community.”
The entire project itself is estimated to cost five million. But due to increasing construction costs another one-point-two million is still needed.
The new childcare facility in Central Hillside and Brea View Senior Housing project is set to break ground next spring. Doors are expected to be opened in late summer of 2026.
