More child care is coming to Longmont next year, as nationwide provider The Nest Schools prepares to open a new center in the city.

Longmont’s Nest School is opening next year in the former home of Bright Horizons child care center at 901 Deerwood Drive. Bright Horizons closed in May.

“We looked at a lot of different properties,” said The Nest Schools co-founder Jane Porterfield. “But we were really excited about that property in particular because of the building itself, the location, and the available outdoor space. We really think we’re going to be able to bring a lot to the community through that.”

While Bright Horizons at East Longmont had room for 100 children up to age 6, The Nest will provide care for 180 children between 6 weeks and 12 years old. Most of those 180 spots will be for infants, toddlers and preschoolers. The school also plans to employ 35 people in the community.

Porterfield and co-founder Gerry Pastor started The Nest in 2021. With years of experience in the child care industry, Pastor and Porterfield want to bring innovative early childhood education to the communities they serve.“We feel like we offer something different,” Pastor said. “That’s certainly our plan and our intention.”

Longmont’s Nest School will rely on a play-inspired curriculum and will offer three unique enrichment programs.

The center will also feature a natural playground, which will double as an outdoor classroom.

“We emphasize health and wellness with the meals we serve, and the trainings that we work with for our teachers,” Pastor said. “It’s incorporated into our curriculum in so many ways.”

The Nest operates 52 schools in nine states. The Longmont location will be the seventh Nest School in Colorado, with five schools in the Denver metro area and one in Broomfield.

“It’s a growing community, and it’s a thriving community,” Pastor said. “We just felt like Longmont would be a community that would welcome the types of offerings that we are bringing for children and families.”

The Nest will pay $1.25 million to renovate the 10,832-square-foot building and hopes to have it ready by late spring of 2025. The construction process can move quickly because The Nest is moving into a location that was recently used for child care, Pastor explained.

If The Nest meets its spring construction goal, its summer camp program might also be available for Longmont families next year.

The program focuses on field trips and spending time outside. All kids are eligible for summer camp, regardless of whether they’re enrolled in other child care programs.

Longmont mayor Joan Peck said early childhood centers are “very much needed” in the local area, as well as across the country.

“I’m very excited about it,” Peck said of The Nest’s expansion to Longmont. “I was sad to see that Bright Horizons closed, and it’s a perfectly wonderful location, so the sooner it opens, the better.”

Peck said early childhood care centers, like The Nest, are what Longmont should be emphasizing.

“We need to keep our workforce,” Peck said. “This is a huge part of having two earners in the family. You’ve got to have care for your children.”