Grey County has awarded the construction tender for a new EarlyON Child and Family Centre in Hanover.
The new facility will replace the current centre with a modern, fully accessible building featuring enhanced program space that better serves families and meets growing community needs. Council made the decision at the January 22 session of Committee of the Whole.
County Warden Andrea Matrosovs says in a statement, “Investing in our children’s early years is one of the most important things we can do as a community.”
The construction tender was awarded to Allen Hastings Limited at a cost of $1.9 million. The new EarlyON will be located at Lot 22, Plan 846 (17th Street Crescent) in Hanover. JPM Architecture Inc. was retained to design the building and oversee construction.
The County says the current EarlyON centre on 9th Street no longer meets operating needs due to aging infrastructure, limited parking, and lack of accessibility.
County Director of Community Services Anne Marie Shaw told councillors Thursday, January 22nd, “We will be looking at selling the existing funding and whatever funds we do receive from that will go back into our mitigation funding reserve.”
They say the new centre will include two playrooms, three office spaces, a meeting room, a kitchen, accessible washrooms, and outdoor play areas. The County says the building is being designed with energy efficiency in mind, “featuring an all-electric heating and cooling system with no reliance on fossil fuels.”
EarlyON Child and Family Centres offer free programs for families and children from birth to six years old. Parents and caregivers can learn and play with their children, meet other parents, and get advice from early childhood professionals.
The project is being funded by the EarlyON Accessibility Reserve, EarlyON Centre Building Reserve, Child Care Mitigation Funding Reserve, and department surplus funds. The build is scheduled to start as soon as weather permits and be completed by the end of 2026.
Matrosovs adds, adds, “EarlyON centres provide valuable support for families as children grow and learn. I’ve seen firsthand how my granddaughter thrived during EarlyON visits and how it benefited the parents, like my daughter, too. By building this new accessible facility, we’re ensuring that families in Hanover have access to high-quality early learning programs for years to come.”