Goals are up on the basketball court; new walls, some colorfully painted, separate the rooms under construction and a large marker with the acronym C3DC welcomes all who enter through the center’s doors on Main Street: all signs the Clark County Child Development Center is nearing completion.

Bo Harris and Liz Fountain led local community leaders through the center Tuesday afternoon. Fountain told the crowd they expect to open this summer.

“We found this building in the heart of downtown, and we just fell in love with it,” Fountain said.

The center will operate as a day care during its day hours and as a community center in the evenings.

For its community center aspect, Fountain said C3DC plans to eventually offer after hour classes such as fitness classes, culinary classes and gym time for adults as well as teens.

C3DC will have numerous rooms for the different age groups as well as enrichment rooms such as a culinary kitchen, tech room, basketball court and tumbling room. Fountain said they are also putting a small playground out back.

Students will learn and rotate through the multiple learning environments, taking classes on culinary, gym, art, music, basic tumbling skills and more. The center will focus on a variety of educational programming including social, emotional, physical, cognitive and language skills.

“All of the programs that we have at the child care facility, the gym, the tumble, the technology, the culinary, the children will rotate through that weekly,” Fountain said.

Fountain said the center would also offer Harris Hoops developmental classes and other youth development leagues. Harris said they would also like to provide a mentor program in the future.

The facility will also offer after-hours child care during community events. Harris said the center wants to eliminate any excuse for not being involved in the community. C3DC’s website will provide memberships to allow people to register for child care before the day of an event. Members can also reserve rooms for conferences, parties and more.

Every student will also have a college fund through the center. The center will deposit a portion of each tuition payment into the fund for every child enrolled at the Clark County Child Development Center.

“So every child who is enrolled at the center from infant all the way to 12 years old will get $10 a month for each child,” Harris said.

Fountain said another unique aspect of the center is its door drop off service. Parents and guardians can sign-in their child and let the center’s staff handle the rest.

The center will employ about 35 staff members at the start, but Fountain said there would likely be more added as the center grows. C3DC is currently hiring for full-time and part-time positions ranging from assistant teachers, aides, preschool teachers, infant teachers, lead teachers and transportation drivers. The center is also looking for community volunteers.

Fountain said the center would accept students between the ages of 6 weeks old to 12-years-old for its day care program.

C3DC is also offering an employee-Childcare partnership. Employers can sponsor a child at C3DC and pay partial or full tuition for that child.

Fountain said the center would also be a hub for nonprofits.

“We want them to come in and have a program,” she said. “Bring it in; we have the space. Anything to really better the community.”

Martha Miller, Clark County circuit clerk, also spoke before the tour about her excitement for C3DC.

“We want you to envision this, not for the hour that you are going to spend walking through, but the hours you are going to spend here in the years to come in our community,” Miller told the crowd.

Miller said she hopes C3DC will unite the community as one. She said she hopes the community will embrace Harris’ and Fountain’s vision for Clark County as she thinks it can lead to great things.

Tracey Miller, Leeds Center for the Arts president, also spoke about the potential community partnerships with C3DC. She said Leeds has already begun planning community events for youth with C3DC such as making arts classes available throughout the summer.

Joseph Miller, executive director of the Rowland Arts Center, said he also plans to partner with C3DC to offer additional programming for his students.

The overall goal of all of the programs, Fountain said, is to make a difference in each child’s life that comes through C3DC’s doors.

“What’s great about what Bo is doing is yes, it is a for-profit day care, but it’s got a nonprofit vision and a nonprofit heart,” Joseph Miller said.

Fountain said the mission and vision for C3DC are to make a difference in the community, especially making a difference in the life of each child who comes to the center.

“We’re excited about bringing these opportunities to these children,” Fountain said. “I think that’s the main thing. Our main focus is just bettering the youth.”