Sylmar : Ground Broken for Child-Care Center

Local officials on Tuesday broke ground on a child-care center with easy access to the Sylmar-San Fernando Metrolink station--among the first in the nation designed to ease the baby-sitting woes of commuting parents.

The $1.3 million facility is financed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the city of Los Angeles and other local governments. The first such center opened at the Montclair Metrolink station last September.

The center will accommodate 70 children, from infants to toddlers, when it opens in February. Parents at Tuesday’s groundbreaking ceremony said the center not only helps to solve the dilemma of finding good, safe child care, but also reduces the time shuttling kids back and forth to a baby-sitter.

“The whole thing is a great idea,” said Kerrie Shraub, a teacher’s aide who now has to drop her son William off in North Hills, on the way to work. “Plus having a certified child-care center will make parents feel that their kids are in a safe and healthy environment.”

Shraub said the center is particularly important because it gives single mothers like her more time with their children which “makes that time riding back home even more precious.”

MTA officials and local politicians also noted benefits in reducing traffic and developing better relationships between parents and their children. “This is definitely a great step forward for parents and for families,” San Fernando Mayor Joanne Baltierrez told the small gathering. “The parents that are on the freeways now have more time to spend with their children.”

Although aimed mainly at parents who ride Metrolink and local buses, the center will be open to the public. MTA officials said once the project is up and rolling, they hope to add shops and services with the hope of creating a small hub.