LAKEVIEW — Tots with a hankering for organic food and yoga in the mornings will soon have an outpost at Short Stuff's newest location.
The North Center-based day care, preschool and learning center will open its third location in Lakeview at 1245 W. Belmont Ave., said Anthony Colston, one of the owners.
Short Stuff opened a center for 19 kids three years ago at 3811 N. Lincoln Ave., and a second center for 34 kids last year at 1908 W. Montrose Ave. The company started after owners couldn't find a day care they liked with a focus both on diet and strong educational programming.
The Belmont location will be the largest, with enough room for 60 kids in its nursery, day care and preschool programs, Colston said.
The center offers organic, locally grown food for breakfast, lunch and snacks. Students participate in a literacy program with activities based on stories. They then do yoga before lunch and naptime.
Unlike the other locations, the Belmont center will feature an indoor playlot and will be divided into one half focusing on traditional learning and the other on Montessori-style teaching.
"Parents are able to take their preference and the learning style they're comfortable with," Colston said.
It also will have two nursery programs instead of one. The preschool class will be capped at 14 children.
Both of the other locations have enrollment waiting lists, Colston said, and Short Stuff has received an "overwhelmingly positive" response from people living in Lakeview, where many of the applicants live.
Costs range from $257 a week for pre-K students to $350 a week for infants in the nursery, Colston said.
The center will start taking applications online in late August or early September, and the plan is to open for business mid-September, said Colston.
