Fergus Falls child care village breaks ground, adds 70 slots

Child care became a workforce project on Channing Avenue as PioneerCare and Fergus Falls Area Habitat for Humanity broke ground on Channing Child Care Village, a development aimed at adding 60 to 70 slots in a city that still lacks hundreds of openings for working parents.

The project will rise on vacant PioneerCare land behind the former Daily Journal building and is planned as three twin-homes with six child care pods. One twin-home is scheduled to be built each year over the next three years, with the first phase expected to start in spring 2026. PioneerCare said the neighborhood-style layout is designed to fit into the daily routines of families who are already juggling shifts, school schedules and commutes across Fergus Falls.

The scale of the gap makes the new village more than a local construction project. PioneerCare CEO Nathan Johnson said Fergus Falls is about 400 child care spots short. A 2022 First Children’s Finance assessment put the city’s shortage closer to 506 slots, while Otter Tail County said the countywide deficit was 1,035 slots. Those numbers help explain why local leaders are treating child care as business infrastructure, not just a private family service.

The financing reflects that same approach. PioneerCare said its foundation’s capital campaign had reached $1.35 million toward a $1.5 million goal by the time of the groundbreaking report. The project announcement page had listed $1.15 million raised toward a $1.4 million goal. PioneerCare said the effort is supported by local businesses, philanthropic organizations and civic leaders, and the nonprofit model is meant to widen the community benefit beyond a single provider.

The work also builds on earlier efforts. PioneerCare opened PioneerKids in September 2022, offering on-site care for up to 14 children with hours from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Otter Tail County launched its Child Care Capacity Grant Program in September 2022 and said more than $150,000 has gone to 25 providers and centers. The Fergus Falls team in the Rural Child Care Innovation Program has also organized three working groups focused on workforce development, outreach and education, and facilities and partnerships.

For local employers, the payoff could be as practical as it is long-term. The Minneapolis Federal Reserve found in 2025 that 86% of Minnesota child care owners and managers agreed the industry is in crisis, a sign that shortages are weighing on hiring and retention across the state. At the same time, Habitat board chair Dale Heglund called the project historic, and said it was the first daycare built by Habitat for Humanity in the nation, underscoring how unusual, and how needed, the Fergus Falls effort has become.