Nonprofit seeks Kenai permit to open therapeutic daycare on Beaver Loop Road

Frontier Community Services wants to open a therapeutic daycare at 2880 Beaver Loop Road, and the Kenai Planning and Zoning Commission will hold a public hearing on the permit it needs Wednesday, Oct. 28. The center would serve about 15 to 20 children from birth through age 7, including children with developmental disabilities and individualized support needs.

The nonprofit's application calls the permit "an initial step in the development process" and says the center is expected to open after July 2027, once it has state child care licensing and other approvals.

The building, which Frontier Community Services previously used as a group home and day program, sits vacant on a 1.36-acre lot in the Rural Residential zone, where city code requires a conditional use permit for a daycare.

Planning Director Kevin Buettner recommends approval in an Oct. 20 staff report that cites a Kenai Peninsula Economic Development District study showing a direct economic impact when child care is not available to working adults. The district's 2026 draft economic development strategy says the borough averages one licensed child care slot for every three children under 5.

Staff found the daycare would add about 40 trips a day to Beaver Loop Road, which carries more than 2,000 vehicles daily. The site lies south of gravel pits and next to a mobile home park. Frontier Community Services plans no new construction beyond a privacy fence around an outdoor play area on the east side. No public comments had been received when the report was written.

If approved, the permit would require Frontier Community Services to file annual activity reports, meet with city staff for inspections on request and obtain a new permit for any expansion or change of use.

The hearing begins at 7 pm in the Kenai City Council Chambers.