City of North Vancouver Breaks Ground on a New Childcare and Fieldhouse in Mahon Park

The construction of a new childcare centre and fieldhouse in Mahon Park officially began with a ground breaking ceremony earlier today. This new facility, made possible through nearly $2.7 million in funding from the government of B.C., will include a 37-space childcare centre with fenced outdoor play space, modern, accessible public washrooms and bookable change rooms, all ready for use by early 2025.

The new childcare centre, to be operated by the Greater Vancouver Region YMCA BC, is part of the City’s Child Care Action Plan, which aims to create 1,000+ new licensed childcare spaces by 2031.

Accessing affordable and licensed child care is a huge challenge for young families,” said City of North Vancouver Mayor Linda Buchanan. “The result is parents, often women, leaving the workforce, which weakens the resilience of our economy and community health. The City is committed to working in partnership with the province and non-profit providers to create new spaces that support the well-being of children and the lives of working parents. Today’s ground breaking is a significant milestone in our commitment to deliver new affordable spaces and a healthier City.”

“Since 2018, over $165 million in child care investments have landed on the North Shore, of which over $80 million has gone back into the pockets of parents as fee reductions,” said Bowinn Ma, MLA, North Vancouver-Lonsdale. “These investments have made a real difference in the lives of families, and there’s more to do. The new Mahon centre builds on this important work and will be a welcome addition to the community for years to come."

The new fieldhouse will include six public individual washrooms (two universally accessible) and two new bookable team change rooms, each with their own washroom and three showers. The outdoor area to the south of the fieldhouse will include an open, covered space for year-round park programming, and the entire facility has been located close to City of North Vancouver recreation amenities like sport courts, Splash Park, playground, skateboard plaza, synthetic turf sports field, exercise equipment, rubberized track and natural area trails.

Significantly, the park will remain open during construction, and temporary washrooms have been provided for park users. 

Background:

• The new childcare centre will add 37 licensed childcare spaces – 12 for children 0-3 years old, 25 for children 3-5 years old. The childcare operator was selected through a competitive City-led process in 2022. 
• The project also includes an upgraded electrical service, new water main and sanitary lines and a new storm water management system meeting current stream protection standards. 
• The project received a grant contribution of nearly $2.7M from the Ministry of Education and Childcare BC New Spaces Fund.