The City of North Vancouver council has approved a child care facility a heritage home on East 2nd Street.
The heritage home, known as Hamersley House, is located at 350 East 2nd Street and is listed as a Heritage ‘A’ building in the City’s 2013 Heritage Register.
Built in 1902, the heritage home is located in the 300-block of East 2nd Street, between St. Andrews Avenue and St. Patricks Avenue.
The home is valued for its association with prominent North Vancouver resident Colonel Alfred St. George Hamersley.
The current zoning allows for single-family dwelling use along with accessory uses such as suites, and bed and breakfast.
The proponents are proposing up to 77 children and 15 to 20 employees that would be working at the home.
The child care would be located within the heritage building, and the existing accessory building would be converted to office and storage space as part of the child care use.
Outdoor play space would be located at the front of the site towards East 2nd Street. The application before the council was only for a change of use, and no extra floors are proposed.
The existing driveway is narrow, given it is a heritage property, and it will be widened to allow for two-way traffic movement.
According to staff, the research on child care needs indicates a need for all child care programs, and particularly for infants and toddlers and school age children.
“In the eastern part of the city where the proposed child care would be located, there is growing demand for child care from residents living in new developments and few existing child care facilities,” staff told the council.
It can be challenging for child care operators to find existing sites in the City suitable for child care facilities, the report adds.
“This proposal for a child care with up to 77 children would contribute significantly to the OCR direction to enhance community well-being and services for all ages, including families with children,” the report says.
Sad to see this happen to a beautiful heritage “home”. I would have serious concerns about traffic, parking and noise for local.residents. a residential.property is being converted into a commercial use.