A demolition crew tears down a former used car lot in Wichita, Feb. 24, 2023. (KSN Photo0
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – The landscape of downtown Wichita changed slightly Friday morning as demolition crews tore down the former Chico’s used car building at Kellogg and Topeka.
In its place, drivers of the center will see a sign announcing that it is the future site of Center City Academy, a nonprofit child development center.
Conner Hampton is the Director of Development at Center City Academy. He called this a giant step toward building the child care center.
“Potentially 16,000 kids right now in Wichita need child care,” she said. “To take this step, to knock it down, [is] another big step toward our goal of building a 13,000-square-foot facility.”
He said it will be a children’s learning center with space for 100 children.
“I think childcare is a force multiplier,” Hampton said. “So every child that comes into a secure facility has other family members, they have parents, who can now go back to work and know that their child is in a safe environment where they know their children are learning every day”.
He said Wichita is in a child care crisis. He spoke at Tuesday’s Wichita City Council meeting to allow Sedgwick County home day care centers to add two more children.
“Home daycare, daycares, we’re not in competition,” Hampton said. “Everybody has a waiting list of 100 to 200 kids. So we know every child care facility that’s opening, every home daycare that can add two more places, just help with that crisis and go back to helping all these children and families in Wichita.”
He said the target opening date for Center City Academy is 2025. He said they chose the location so parents can take the Kellogg exit, drop off their kids and get to work.
Before it can open, Hampton said they are still trying to raise money. For more information or to make a donation, click on CenterCityAcademy.org.
He credited a partnership with Dondlinger Construction and Conway Bank for Friday’s demolition.
