Parents are demanding answers after a daycare in the Halifax area closed without warning after operating for 13 years.
The co-owner of the Cobequid Children’s Centre in Lower Sackville is defending his actions and said nothing is owed to any of the affected families, but same parents said that’s not the case.
Parents and staff arrived at the daycare Monday morning to find the doors to the facility had been locked.
Karen Kearney returned to the daycare Tuesday in the hopes of collecting her children’s things, but the doors were still locked.
“I’m saddened. I’m taken aback. I really don’t know where to go from here,” said Kearney. “It could have been handled differently.”
Staff members were told to clean the daycare on Friday because the health inspector was coming in the morning. A neighbouring business said equipment was moved over the weekend.
But staff said they weren’t told the daycare would be shut down.
Patrick McGowan owns the business with his wife. He defended their actions to CTV News Monday evening.
"I do feel very sorry for these families,” he said. "But unfortunately, I was going farther and farther into debt with this business and that is exactly what happened."
McGowan was emotional as he ripped up post-dated cheques from families on camera.
“I could have been misleading to people and put these (cheques) in the bank, but I didn’t do that. I had no intentions, nor did the owner, of hurting anyone,” he said.
“I am finishing up, and I apologize again to the family members, but there is nothing owed.”
But Kearney said she is owed cash as well as items locked inside the daycare.
“There’s a little bit owed at least, people’s belongings,” she said.
“Our cheque was cashed at the beginning of the month. I have two children. That was $1500 and they had six or seven days of daycare. Where is the rest of my money?”
The Rhys family found out about the closure while on vacation in Ontario. They paid $660 in cash for the months of April and May and want to know where their money is too.
Parents affected by the closure have been in contact with the building’s manager and hope they will be able to get inside and collect their belongings over the next few days.
The issue reached the Nova Scotia legislature on Tuesday when Tory MLA Eddie Orrell asked Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Karen Casey how much the daycare was subsidized by government.
Kasey said she is unaware of the dollar amount or whether any of it can be recouped.
“Depends on whether they have gone into financial receivership, if there’s been garnishment by the federal government,” said Casey.
“Those are all bits of information that we don’t know, but we will certainly be investigating that.”
By law, daycare operators are supposed to give the department 120 days notice before a closure.
Calls and emails to the owners from both government and parents have gone unanswered.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Jayson Baxter
