Child care center leases space at Robert Martin building in Elmsford

Lightbridge Academy, which franchises child care centers, has made a move into Westchester County. Franchisees Ram Jagadeesan and JoAnne McKay Jagadeesan have signed a lease with Robert Martin Co. LLC for space in its building The Elm, which is at 35 Valley Road in Elmsford.

They have taken 10,000 square feet in the building for their academy that will provide early education and child care for children ages 6 weeks through kindergarten, as well as special programming for children up to 10 years old during school holidays, breaks and summer camp. They hope to open the facility during the summer. The brokers involved in arranging the lease were RM Friedland and Katz & Associates.

Lightbridge Academy was established in 1997 and began franchising in 2011. It is based in Iselin, New Jersey, and it uses a network of real estate brokers to help would-be franchisees identify locations that are appropriate. Selection criteria include the size of adult and child populations, household income, traffic counts, favorable lease terms, building size and other factors. Lightbridge has been focusing its operations in New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina and Florida.

During a welcoming ceremony at The Elm, Elmsford Mayor Robert Williams said, “Child care is in big demand and this will greatly help families that had to travel far from home for child care and will assist families looking to start child care.”

Greg Berger, president of Robert Martin, said, “Not only is this new child care center a great addition to our project but it”™s also an important and much-needed addition to the community.”

Ram Jagadeesan said the center would use state-of-the-art technology, such as surveillance cameras and biometric entry doors, to help ensure safety and security at the site.