Lynchburg officials plan to sell an empty city-owned building on Jackson Street to make way for a new day care center, pending approval from the city council Tuesday.
The building, constructed in 1853, served as the city’s youth group home but has been largely vacant for the past decade, according to the city council’s meeting agenda. In May, city officials issued a request for proposals to invite developers to purchase and redevelop the building and the adjacent one-third-acre lot.
Together, the properties are appraised at $428,000. The proposed developer, Lynchburg Services LLC, has offered to purchase the properties for $200,000 and redevelop the campus into an early learning child care center.
The reimagined Diamond Hill neighborhood landmark would serve between 120 and 150 children aged 3 months to 13 years, according to Lynchburg Services’ proposal, and create up to 30 full- and part-time jobs.
The renovation project would cost Lynchburg Services an estimated $850,000 and would involve revamping plumbing, electrical and HVAC systems; installing new insulation and drywall; and adding finishing touches such as flooring, cabinets and fresh paint.
The project aligns with the 2024 Diamond Hill Neighborhood Plan, which identified the expansion of early childhood education as a priority. The plan was created to catalyze reinvestment in the historic 2,000-person neighborhood, bordered by the Central Business District and the Lynchburg Expressway, which “has experienced a period of disinvestment” in recent years. Household income is lower in Diamond Hill than in Lynchburg at large, the report states, and the majority of Diamond Hill residents are Black, while the majority of Lynchburg residents are white.
The child care shortage is a national issue, with about 4.2 million U.S. children lacking access to a formal care slot in their community, according to a September study by the Washington, D.C.-based Bipartisan Policy Center. The gap affects the labor force twofold, the study says: by preventing parents who want to work from taking jobs and restricting access to programming that can boost the early learning skills that support the future workforce.
In Virginia, about two in three employers report that their employees can’t find child care programs with open seats, according to a December study released by the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank and the Virginia Chamber Foundation. About one in three employers in the state report that they’ve had workers leave their jobs due to inadequate child care options.
The Lynchburg City Council will vote on the sale of the Jackson Street properties at its meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, following a public hearing when residents can speak in favor of or against the development.
If the sale goes through, Lynchburg Services staff would finalize designs and secure building permits throughout the first half of 2026, and construction would be completed by late summer or early fall of 2027, according to the sales contract.
Lynchburg Services has a track record of bringing other historic buildings back to life in the area, including the former Coca-Cola Bottling Co. building on Jefferson Street that’s seen in Lynchburg’s skyline and is now home to Wolfbane Productions’ performing arts center.
Also on Tuesday, city council members have a busy work session agenda beginning at 4 p.m., including:
- A consideration to reaffirm the city’s status as a Second Amendment Sanctuary, which was first adopted as a resolution in 2023 to support the right to keep and bear arms;
- A consideration to adopt a resolution to express opposition to the proposed state redistricting amendment that would allow for a new congressional map in 2026;
- A discussion on a zoning ordinance that could regulate where abortion clinics can open in the city. The planning commission’s motion to approve the ordinance failed 4-2 on Dec. 10, after five residents spoke against the zoning changes and one spoke in favor. The ordinance won’t appear for a city council public hearing and vote until Jan. 27, according to the meeting agenda.