City Council to look at opening childcare centre in Adelaide CBD The City Council will investigate becoming a childcare operator. Paul Rhigas with his son Elijah, 3, at the CBC Community Childcare Centre. The City Council is set to investigate opening a childcare centre under a push to diversify its business interests. chilThree councillors - Anne Moran, Natasha Malani and Houssam Abiad - have told the City Messenger the idea should be investigated. The move comes as childcare operators say couples are having to put their names down at city centres even before conceiving because of two-year waits for infant places. Cr Moran said Town Hall should partner with a developer who would build a new commercial tower on the council-owned City Beach volleyball site in Pirie St, from which the council would run a large childcare centre on the top levels with a rooftop playground. "The council needs to look at businesses that can help provide income but can also help make the city more attractive to workers and visitors," she said. A really well run, extended hours childcare centre would be enormously popular. There's a huge demand that in the long term is only going to get much, much greater and I think in the long term we couldn't fail. Cr Moran will call for a report into the viability of running a childcare centre from the Pirie St site at the council's May 28 meeting. Cr Malani said maintenance costs and more competition meant car parking was not the cash cow it once was, so the council needed to look for alternative revenue streams. "Childcare ticks all the boxes," she said. It's a service the community needs, it provides revenue and it supports workers in the city. Childcare SA president Kerry Mahony had no problem with the council entering the market, but warned many centres were on the verge of collapse because of onerous federal regulations requiring higher staff ratios, better qualified staff and higher pay. Inevitable fee hikes would potentially cause demand to plummet, Mr Mahony said. "Why anybody would want to jump into this cesspool I have no idea," he said. Many private investors are backing off from childcare at the moment because of the huge costs and the incredible level of change going on at the moment. On the upside, he said there might be viable locations in the city and the council could avoid rent if it used its own property, as well as avoiding some private sector taxes. Community Children's Centres SA chairwoman Melanie Gohl, who is the director of the childcare centre at Christian Brothers College, said waiting lists of up to two years were common and demand would grow as the city's worker and residential populations grew. However, Ms Gohl said it made more sense for centres to expand to accommodate demand rather than a new player entering the market. "It would be advisable to consult with the community to make sure you are building a service that is going to be viable," she said. Parent and city worker Paul Rhigas waited a year to enrol son Elijah, 3, at CBC Community Children's Centre. "There was a big waiting list and I was quite surprised," he said. Every one of the (city centres) said you need to put your name down immediately. He said the council would need to hire a good director to ensure a viable centre in a tough financial time for the industry.