Kids Place Makes Smooth Transition To Temporary Home At Northeast Elementary

Kids Place’s summer residency at Northeast Elementary is a homecoming of sorts.

Northeast was the original home of Glenwood Community High School’s daycare back when it opened in the 1990s. This summer, the K-third grade elementary school is serving as the temporary home for Kids Place as renovations take place on its home for more than two decades,  - the 103 Central building on the former Glenwood Resource Center campus.

When completed, the 93-year-old 103 Central building will serve the district’s current and future needs as the home of the newly branded Lakin Childhood Development Center on the first two floors, the district’s central office on the third and its THRIVE and APEX programs on the fourth floor.

The project is estimated to cost just more than $4 million with funds coming from a variety of sources, including $1.7 million from the districts Secure an Advanced Vision for Education (SAVE) fund, a $1.4 million Child Care Business Incentive grant, and a $1 million donation from the Kids Place Childcare Champions’ fundraising efforts.

More than half of that budget will go toward new plumbing, a new heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system, electrical work and general utilities and fiber optic work. The new HVAC system alone is estimated at $1.5 million for the 35,000 square foot building.

But while all that work is underway, Kids Place is summering at Northeast. The district office and its staff, including superintendent Nicole Kooiker are working out of Glenwood Middle School.
Kooiker said the transition has gone as smoothly as she could have hoped for.

“Knock on wood, its gone well so far,” she said.

The temporary move did require some logistical planning and a lot of moving pieces – literally.

On the last weekend in May, a team of district employees and volunteers undertook the clearing out and moving of furniture and equipment from the building. Some of that went to Northeast for Kids Place and much of it went to storage during the construction phase.

Northeast also required some additional “child proofing” and a little juggling of classroom layouts.

Northeast has proven a good fit for the program with its large classrooms, gymnasium, multi-purpose room, ample playground and its close-proximity to the middle school, where the three-year-olds and over enrollees walk to for lunch daily.

Rhonda Maiers and Deb Rodenburg are the co-interim directors for Kids Place. Both have long histories with the daycare and the school district, holding various positions at the daycare since its opening. Kids Place is seeking a permanent director, and the job is currently being advertised with the hope to have the position filled this summer.

Rodenburg, a former GCSD administrator, hired Maiers at Kids Place originally back in the 1990s. When Maiers returned in an interim capacity, one of her first moves was to hire Rodenberg back.

“So now we’re both back starting this all over again,” Maiers said. “It’s a full circle and I have great nieces and nephews (attending Kids Place), and she has grandkids here, so this is like a third-generation thing for us. But things are going well and we’re all settling in.”

About 60 children aged six weeks to fifth graders are enrolled over the summer at Kids Place at Northeast. Spots are currently open for families and the facility expanded its hours to be open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Kooiker said Northeast provides plenty of space, but classrooms are spread out more than the 103 layout, leading to a handful of complaints about changes in drop off and pick procedures. But, she added, one area has received glowing reviews.

“The kids are loving the playground there,” Kooiker said. “That and the walk to the middle school for the lunch program has them outside a lot so that’s worked out really well.”

The middle school is serving as the de factor central office during these summer months. Kooiker’s office, business services and the remaining staff have all made the best of their new, albeit temporary, space.

“It has actually been pretty handy being at the middle school,” Kooiker said. “It’s close to the high school, close to Northeast and that’s worked out well. It’s also nice to be in a building where there’s a lot of action.”

The middle school is the host for the district’s summer food program. The technology department is also using the school as a base of operations for Chromebooks updates, and the gymnasium has been active with open gyms.

“There’s office and conference room space – for instance I’m in a therapeutic classroom – and offices right near the office area that have vacated for the summer to be able to come in and be close together has worked great,” Kooiker said.

Renovations at 103 Central are expected to be completed by early August.
Just last week, Kooiker met with general contractor Mecco-Henne on the construction timeline. She said the building will be disconnecting from the GRC’s antiquated former power plant and moving over to the main power grid later this month while finishing work is also nearly complete on a new concrete accessibility ramp on the east side of the building as well as the building’s plumbing and electrical improvements.

“I am happy to say we are on schedule and if things continue to go smoothly, we are planning to transition back in (to the building) before the start of school,” Kooiker said.

The district’s first day of school is Aug. 21.