EXCERPT FROM: Silver City Sun-News
By Terrance Vestal
SILVER CITY -- After three years and a number of hurdles, a new day care center in Silver City that was spearheaded by Grant County is scheduled to have a ribbon-cutting at 1 p.m. today.
Grant County Manager Jon Saari said Tuesday the need for a center had been identified through a Community Development Block Grant process in 2006.
County officials back in January had hoped for an opening in May but delays, including the installation of a telephone line that ended up taking two months, pushed completion back.
"It was just one thing after another," Saari said.
The county received $455,000 for the project in March 2007, with Silver City supplying in-kind services in the form of sewer and water hookups. The county provided land, which is located on Camino Del Bosque across from the Forest Service office, as matching funds required to receive the block grant.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., who is scheduled to be at the ribbon cutting today, assisted in securing $162,000 for furniture, fixtures, equipment and training.
The building features classrooms for infants, toddlers and older children who are still in need of day care. The playground is divided into two sections. A section for younger children offers interactive panels along its fencing and the other playground has a fountain that helps water native plants and a student garden.
Because it is set to be a day care center, the county, which will own the building and lease it to a service provider, had to go through more hoops than normal regarding building standards and inspections. The county awarded a request for proposals to manage the day care center to Turtleback Youth Services. The center will be called Turtleback Child Care, and will be operated by Scott Weaver.