Positive Growth Daycare opens on Syracuse south side, fills childcare gap

Positive Growth Daycare opened its doors on Syracuse’s south side with a ribbon cutting at 1640 South Ave., adding a new childcare option in a neighborhood where parents often struggle to find nearby care at all. The center is now accepting applications for children as young as six weeks old, a detail that matters most for working families with infants, who usually face the tightest supply of slots.

Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon attended the opening and delivered remarks alongside Brianca Hill, the City of Syracuse’s director of business development. Their presence underscored how closely childcare has become tied to the region’s workforce and economic-development goals. For many parents, especially those balancing hourly jobs, rotating shifts or training programs, a center close to home can determine whether they can stay employed or return to work after a birth.

The south side has long been described as a childcare desert, and the new center arrives against a backdrop of persistent shortages across Onondaga County. In 2022, the county had lost 42 child-care providers since 2020, according to a syracuse.com report, worsening a market that already had too few licensed slots. Before the pandemic, the county had only enough licensed child-care spaces for about half of children under age 6, leaving many families piecing together care across town or relying on informal arrangements.

County officials have tried to address the shortage with public money. Onondaga County announced a $500,000 child-care grant program in 2023, and in a 2024 grant round, 73 child-care providers received funding. Still, the pressure on the system has remained severe enough that the Onondaga County Department of Social Services later paused childcare assistance applications and moved families onto a waiting list after running short on state funding.

That is why the opening of Positive Growth Daycare carries more than a symbolic message. Every new slot gives parents another chance to keep a job, accept a new shift, or avoid a long cross-city commute to drop off a baby or toddler. In a neighborhood where residents have heard plenty about shortages, the ribbon cutting at 1640 South Ave. offered something more immediate: one more place where a south side family can look for care close to home.