HELENA — St. Peter's Health will open its new Pete's Place Early Childhood Education Center on Monday.
The new center will be located in the former Ray Bjork Learning Center.
The hospital leased the 22,000-square-foot facility from the Helena Public Schools District after the district decided to close the building.
St. Peter's Health has been renovating the building for the past six months, updating electrical and water systems, adding a fire suppression system and remodeling classrooms to improve safety and visibility.
Hospital leaders say the $3.6 million project is being funded by a federal ARPA grant and private donations to the St. Peter's Health Foundation.
Pete's Place provides child care and early childhood education for the children of St. Peter's Health employees.
“I think it's really great that the hospital is offering this,” pharmacist Marilyn Handyside said. “I've never heard of, 'You can have day care.'”
Handyside told MTN that she has two children who will be attending Pete's Place this fall.
St. Peter's Health Chief Operating Officer Brian Lee told MTN the project is a win-win: It provides child care facilities for employees, helps the hospital recruit and retain health care workers in the Helena area, and helps Helena Public Schools reuse vacant school buildings.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to take the incredible childcare and early learning programs that we've had for nearly 40 years and nearly quadruple that capacity,” Lee said.
Pete's Place cares for babies through preschool children.
St. Peter's Health expects to have 180 children enrolled by the fall, with the hopes of increasing enrollment to 240 within the next 18 months.
The program also plans to add an after-school care program in the future.
