A new early learning center taking shape on Main Street in Ramona is now halfway finished, with crews racing to close up walls and finish weatherproofing before winter rains arrive. The 12,400-square-foot Children's Paradise campus, designed to resemble an 1880s schoolhouse with siding, brick and a bell tower, is on track for completion in spring 2027, according to the company.
The project, reported by San Diego Union-Tribune reporter Julie Gallant, sits at 1721 Main St. and will become the company's 10th location in San Diego County once it opens. Steve Powell, president of Ramona-based Woodcrest Homes Inc., which is developing the center, said electrical, plumbing and heating and cooling systems are nearly finished. Crews will soon close the interior walls and begin insulation, drywall and cabinet layout over the next several weeks, Powell said, while exterior work on roofing and finishes continues ahead of the rainy season.
A Schoolhouse Look With Modern Logistics
The center's facade is meant to evoke an old-fashioned Ramona schoolhouse, complete with a school bell, according to an earlier report from the Union-Tribune covering the project's March groundbreaking. Once open, the site will include infant, toddler and preschool areas, along with a kitchen and dedicated play spaces. Parking lots are planned for both the front and back of the building, and drop-off and pick-up will be staggered between 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. so that no line of cars forms outside.
Children's Paradise CEO Julie Lowen said the center is designed to serve the full range of early childhood needs, from infant care for babies as young as 6 weeks old through summer day camp for children up to age 12. The company also offers toddler care for ages 18 to 36 months, preschool for ages 3 to 5, before- and after-school care for ages 5 to 9, and parenting classes. Lowen said Ramona families need dependable child care and that the company is excited to approach the opening of the new site, adding that the center will support parents' ability to work while giving children a place to learn and grow.
Local Kids Already Getting a Peek
Local Kids Already Getting a Peek Ramona-area children have visited the construction site during construction, getting an early look at the building that will soon serve them. Powell said the visits during construction show how much the project means to the community. The Ramona center will welcome enrollment from all families, including both private-paying families and those eligible for subsidies.
Children's Paradise currently operates nine existing centers across Poway, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Escondido and Vista. The company's broader presence in those communities is reflected on its own general policies page, which lists its network of sites. The Ramona expansion follows a March groundbreaking ceremony attended by local officials and families, amid limited child care options in the area.
A Shortage Driving the Expansion
The push for more seats in Ramona reflects a wider child care squeeze across the region. The San Diego County Child Care Blueprint found there is only one licensed child care slot for every two children under age 5 countywide, according to a report from the North County Daily Star. Lowen has separately described Ramona itself as a child care desert, per the San Diego Business Journal.
That shortage extends statewide. In 2022, only 1 in 9 California children eligible for subsidized child care programs actually received services, according to the California Budget & Policy Center, which also found rural counties post some of the lowest enrollment rates in the state, around 9 to 11 percent. The state has pledged to add 200,000 additional child care spaces by 2027, the same organization reports.
For now, the Ramona project remains a construction site rather than an open campus, with completion expected in spring 2027.
