Opposition To Proposed Daycare Expansion

Plans to expand a childcare centre in Quispamsis are receiving opposition from local residents.

Vicki Newell owns and operates Little Blossoms Learning Centre, a 20-child daycare on Greystone Drive.

Newell wants to rezone land at 86 Meenans Cove Road to build a new daycare for up to 60 children between the ages of 15 months and 12 years.

In a presentation to council Tuesday, Newell said her daycare has been at full capacity since shortly after it opened in May of 2014.

She said the waitlist has grown substantially over the past few years and there is a “huge demand” for more spaces.

But two neighbouring property owners have written letters to the town objecting to the rezoning.

Shyane McKay said she and her husband are currently building their first home and will be occupying it in the next month.

“We took great care in choosing the best lot to purchase before building our home by making sure it was a nice, quiet residential area to live,” McKay wrote in her letter.

McKay, who is a registered nurse at the Saint John Regional Hospital, said she works 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. as part of her shift rotation and would need to sleep during the day.

“It would be impossible to sleep during the day if my backyard was a playground for the 60 children as the proposed daycare is literally in my backyard,” she said.

McKay said she feels allowing any of the surrounding properties to be rezoned from residential will reduce the value of their property.

Cherie-Lee Adams (Carhart) and Nicholas Carhart also raised similar concerns in their letter of objection to the town. Adams works shift-work at the Saint John Regional Hospital as an emergency physician.

“Our greatest concern would be the increase in ambient noise conferred by any commercial development, but likely exaggerated due to outside playtime at the propose childcare facility and traffic at drop off and pick up,” they wrote.

The Carhart’s are also worried about the impact on the value of their home and raised concerns about public safety and infrastructure impacts.

Newell noted not all 60 children would be outside playing at once as there are regulations guiding which age groups can play together.

In a report to council, municipal planning officer Dwight Colbourne said the proposed development exceeds the setback requirements from adjacent homes.

To help mitigate noise, Colbourne said tree buffering would be maintained between the site and one of the neighbouring properties, and a vegetated buffer area will be built between the site and the other neighbouring property.

Council approved the first and second reading of the rezoning Tuesday. The request must still come back for final reading.