Some folks were feeling the squeeze in Queensborough as development continued to balloon this year.
What was once a quiet farming community where horses roamed free, today the ‘Boro is growing at a rapid rate – a rate some would say is too fast for its own good.
Between 2001 and 2011, the majority of the city’s population growth in children occurred in Queensborough (50.3 per cent), and as of 2014, there were 108 child-care spaces available in Queensborough and 1,240 kids aged zero to 12. This is the widest divide in the city and equals only about eight spaces for every 100 kids in Queensborough.
Frustrated with the lack of child-care spaces, ‘Boro resident Jennifer Kerr called on the City of New Westminster for help. Kerr complained that for school aged kids, finding before and after care was nearly impossible. Her son, for example, was on a waitlist with about 112 other kids hoping for a spot in Westminster Children’s After School Society’s Queensborough location. The society, however, only had room for 20 kids.
So the city stepped in and approved spending $34,000 from its child care reserve and an additional $10,000 from community amenity contributions to cover the costs of relocating and renovating a second portable for the Westminster society’s use. When complete, sometime in the new year, the new portable will add another 20 before-and-after school care spaces.
There will still be about 90 kids waiting for before and after school care in the ‘Boro.
