May 15 Akron Planning Commission meeting
Covered by Documenter Wittman Sullivan (see the notes here)
A new day care center in Akron’s North Hill neighborhood that will operate inside the AMHA-owned Valley View Apartments community building was unanimously approved by the Akron City Council following a short public hearing June 15. The Akron Planning Commission had previously supported the project at its May 25 meeting.
The day care will be operated by Kid Space Childcare LLC. The facility, located at 943 Springdale St. will have two to three staff members supervising 10-15 children from the ages of 3 to 5, Monday through Thursday, during the school year.
Kid Space will lease a portion of the 4,984 square-foot building. This includes a large meeting room, a file room, a kitchen, a bathroom and a fenced-in outdoor play area.
City of Akron planning staff, who presented recommendations to Akron City Council’s Planning Commission, supported the request and said the business would have no negative impact on the surrounding neighborhood, adding that AMHA has had a similar operation at its Honey Locust housing in Cuyahoga Falls since 2011.
Original plans envisioned day care
“The Planning Staff has historically believed that this community center would be a logical location for a day care business center,” according to a recent city memo about this project.
When approval was sought from the city to build the community building in 1993, the planning staff noted in their report at the time that the space may be used for a Head Start program.
The Akron Planning Commission and City Council do not approve every new business in Akron, but when a business’ operations fall outside the scope of the property’s zoning, council must OK any changes.
Valley View Apartments were built in the 1970s in an area zoned for single-family residences.
The complex is a public housing complex operated and maintained by AMHA and is intended primarily to house families in two- to four-room townhouses, although some single units are available.
