San Leandro Celebrates Opening of La Plazita Preschool

SAN LEANDRO, CA, November 2, 2021—Mayor Pauline Cutter and city officials joined La Plazita Preschool and BRIDGE Housing yesterday to celebrate the opening of La Plazita Preschool and Infant Center.

The center is located in BRIDGE’s Marea Alta family affordable housing community at 1400 San Leandro Boulevard, across the street from the San Leandro BART Station.

Funds for the construction of the new preschool came from the City of San Leandro and BRIDGE Housing. Up to 15 spaces are reserved for families currently living in Marea Alta, and will be free of cost to qualifying households. The project was designed by two local design firms, MESH Design Build Studio and Dune Hai Landscape Design, and constructed by JH Fitzmaurice Contractors of Oakland.

This is La Plazita’s fourth center, and first outside of Oakland, where it has earned acclaim for its Spanish-immersion and multicultural approach to caring for children and preparing them for Kindergarten. The San Leandro center serves 65 children, ages 3 months to 5 years old, providing infant care all the way up to TK and pre-Kindergarten.

“The completion of La Plazita Infant and Preschool Center culminates this vital affordable housing community developed and owned by BRIDGE Housing, with City affordable housing funding supporting the project,” said San Leandro Mayor Pauline Russo Cutter. “A key attribute of our City is its diversity. I’m pleased La Plazita is an entirely Spanish immersion preschool and has a mission to create jobs and careers for recent immigrants who are native Spanish speakers.”

“La Plazita is very excited to partner with BRIDGE Housing to build this beautiful center that represents a plaza or community gathering place to collaborate in raising the children of our community together,” said Krystell Guzman, Owner/Operator of La Plazita. “We are so happy for the opportunity to help raise children who are fully bilingual and prepared for kindergarten, as well as create new employment opportunities in the city of San Leandro.”

“Quality child care is a fundamental part of thriving communities,” said Smitha Seshadri, Executive Vice President of BRIDGE Housing. “We’re thrilled to partner with La Plazita to bring a much-needed service to families in San Leandro at a convenient, transit-rich location within our Marea Alta property.”

For more information about La Plazita, visit www.laplazitapreschool.com. To learn more about BRIDGE Housing, visit www.bridgehousing.com.

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ABOUT LA PLAZITA
La Plazita is a true Spanish Immersion preschool that aims to inspire and prepare children to succeed in a global and multilingual society. With a rich curriculum designed by highly experienced educators and training experts, La Plazita’s mission is to foster in a playful way a solid linguistic, cognitive and socio-emotional foundation, structured academics, a supportive loving environment and creative expression. For more information, visit www.laplazitapreschool.com.

ABOUT BRIDGE HOUSING
BRIDGE Housing Corporation, a leading nonprofit developer and owner of affordable housing, creates and manages a range of high-quality, affordable homes for families and seniors in California, Oregon and Washington. Since it was founded in 1983, BRIDGE has participated in the development of more than 18,000 homes. For more information, visit www.bridgehousing.com.

BRIDGE Housing