Photo by Liz Copan / Studio Copan
As the Silverthorne community continues to grow, so does the need for child care on the northern end of Summit County.
Silverthorne and Summit County officials recognized the need for additional child care and partnered to build a new center at the Smith Ranch Neighborhood.
Silverthorne Town Manager Ryan Hyland said having a child care facility by Smith Ranch has been a goal since the start of the project. Hyland said the project is in its planning and building programming phase, working with architects and developers on what the facility would look like. Based on the current timeline, construction would begin in spring 2022 with the building set to open in January 2023.
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Timberline Learning Center co-teacher Leah Tharp plays with Fischer Dineen at the preschool in Breckenridge on Friday, Jan. 8. Following the March 2020 COVID-19 shutdown, child care centers were not permitted to reopen until May 11, 2020. Many waited until June to open.
Photo by Jason Connolly / Jason Connolly Photography Editor’s note: The photo in this story has been updated with the correct name of Fischer Dineen.
The Summit Chamber of Commerce hosted a meeting on Thursday, Feb. 11, to discuss the child care issues Summit County faces, as well as potential solutions.
Chamber Executive Director Blair McGary pointed out the lack of consistent, affordable child care in the community, which has only worsened as a result of the pandemic. Nicole Riehl, president and CEO of the Colorado nonprofit Executives Partnering to Invest in Children, talked about ways employers can help their employees manage child care.