Three-month rent reprieve proposed for Children’s Corner in Fergus Falls
Fergus Falls school leaders approved a three-month rent reprieve for Children’s Corner, a short-term step meant to keep child care steady for local families.
A three-month rent reprieve for Children’s Corner moved ahead at the Fergus Falls school board’s June 8 meeting, when members unanimously approved an amendment to the lease. The decision gives the longtime child care provider more breathing room as parents, staff and district leaders watch to see whether children’s routines at Lincoln School can stay intact.
The lease fight has been building for years. Fergus Falls Public Schools said negotiations over Children’s Corner’s use of part of Lincoln School began around 2019, and the district and center eventually reached an 18-year agreement that started in April 2021. The district has said the base rent has not increased since then and will not rise during the lease term, while Children’s Corner asked for a significant reduction in rent for the remaining 13 years.
In its March 2 public statement, the district said a typical 2% annual increase would have saved Children’s Corner more than $600,000 over the life of the lease. It also warned that losing the lease payments could mean as much as $2.6 million in missed revenue. At the same time, Superintendent Jeff Drake said the district was reviewing smaller facilities, including the possible closure of McKinley School, while no final decisions had been made.
The childcare issue reaches far beyond one lease. Otter Tail County said a 2022 First Children’s Finance report found a shortage of 1,035 child care slots in the county, underscoring how tight the market remains for working families. The county also said its Child Care Capacity Grant Program, launched in September 2022, had awarded more than $150,000 to 25 child care providers and centers. That context makes even a temporary fix at Children’s Corner significant for parents trying to keep work schedules and school-day logistics on track.
Children’s Corner Learning Center says it has provided quality care since 1971 and serves children ages 6 weeks to 5 years old at locations in Fergus Falls and Perham. The lease had already been a board topic in August 2025, when members held a work session after a regular meeting to discuss it. With the amendment now approved, the immediate question is whether that short-term cushion will be enough to preserve care continuity while the district and center keep working through the longer-term budget and facilities questions still hanging over Lincoln School.
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