Plateau Preschool Seeking a New Home

One of the Plateau's longtime preschools, Sammamish Christian School and Noah's Ark Preschool (SNSCA), must find a new location after this school year. 

Marla Miller, the nonprofit school's business manager, said the school is scurrying to find a new location big enough to handle 130 students before fall, but it's tough to find space to lease on the Plateau, where SCSNA has been located since its founding 15 years ago.

"That's a lot of kids," Miller said. The program operates in eight classrooms currently. "Even if we do find a place, we'll probably have to scale back our program."

The organization has always been located 4221 228th Ave. SE in Issaquah, just south of Sammamish, but City Church, which has owned the building for four years, has decided to open its own program there once SCSNA's current lease expires.

"They have children's programs in other locations, and it makes sense that they would want to build their community here," Miller said. Unfortunately for families with children at SCSNA, alumni parents had already begun the process of enrolling children for next fall when SCSNA got the final word that it would have to move. The board had been in lease negotiations with City Church since last August, Miller said.

The organization continues to look for another location, preferably not too far away from its current site, but Miller said finding a place that it could move into before August is a real challenge as space is limited on the plateau and preschools are plentiful.

"We've talked to everybody, and even had a real estate guy looking for us," but so far it hasn't secured a location, though it is in early talks with a possible site, Miller said.

In the meantime, it notified parents of the issue right away so they could make other contingency plans.

"In order to take care of our parents we let them know right away. We told them that if we do find space, we'll let them know," Miller said.

She said that if anyone knows of a suitable available location, they are encouraged to give SCSNA a call at 425-392-7470.

The school is holding its annual benefit auction next Friday, March 16, at Pickering Barn in Issaquah.

Editor's note: The City Church could not be reached before publication, but we'll update this story as information becomes available.