Listen to this articleVariety Child Learning Center has leased 40,000 square feet at an East Northport elementary school that closed in 2022.
The Syosset-based nonprofit signed a long-term lease for the Bellerose Elementary School, located on 15.8 acres at 253 Bellerose Ave., which will begin in July 2025.
Founded in 1966, the Variety Child Learning Center provides educational and support services for children with special needs. Besides its Syosset center, Variety operates at three locations in Levittown. The East Northport facility will be its first in Suffolk County, designed to meet the growing demand for specialized education in the area. The first classes are scheduled to begin in the fall of 2025.
“We are thrilled to expand our center-based programs into Suffolk County allowing us to further our mission in supporting more children and families along their early childhood education journey,” Janet Koch, CEO of Variety Child Learning Center, said in a written statement. “Our partnership with the Northport East Northport School District exemplifies our combined commitment to meeting the needs of our communities.”
Scott Berfas and Dan Oliver of Newmark represented the school district in the lease transaction.
“We are pleased to bring Variety Child Learning Center as a tenant for their inaugural Suffolk County location,” Berfas said in the statement. “This new space will be a vital hub providing essential learning, growth, and support services for children with special needs and their families. The transaction also underscores our team’s integrated approach to serving the public, municipal, and educational sectors, assisting with implementing strategic real estate plans.”
Dave Moyer, superintendent of the Northport-East Northport School District, said: “We are pleased that through our partnership with Newmark that we were able to secure a tenant for our property that helps stabilize our finances and provides improved service options for our families and the surrounding area.”
The Bellerose Avenue school was one of three properties that the Northport-East Northport Union Free School District had first tasked Newmark to market for sale or lease in Feb. 2023. However, community opposition to redevelopment projects proposed by potential buyers prompted the district to change course and only seek tenants for the properties, which also included the Dickinson Avenue Elementary School, a 55,080-square-foot building on 12 acres at 120 Dickinson Ave. and The William J. Brosnan School, a 117,800-square-foot building on 14.8 acres at 158 Laurel Ave.
A few weeks ago, a portion of the Dickinson Avenue school was leased to Western Suffolk BOCES, with the remaining space being utilized for various district functions.