North Phoenix preschool opens new campus weeks after they were evicted from old premises

North Phoenix preschool opens new campus after eviction battle

Weeks after Small People Preschool was forced out of its original campus, school is back in session at their new home. FOX 10's Marissa Sarbak reports.

PHOENIX - Almost a month after a North Phoenix preschool was evicted from its premises, they are open for students once again, this time at a new location.

"It’s our opening day. We did it," said the preschool's owner, Jo Clute. "We’re so relieved that everything worked out, that we’re just breathing today."

We first reported on the Small People Preschool in early March. At the time, we reported that the building the preschool operated out of was purchased by an investor, and that investor asked the school to move out by Mar. 31.

The school moved out of its old premises on April 3.

"This eviction has been more than all of us can handle," said Clute back in April. "It's barely enough to handle working on the construction of this building, but to be rushed and not to have any play room or any margin of error, it has been very difficult for us."

"It's stressful. I have to just live day by day, and I don't know what's going to happen," said Stephanie Zazueta, whose kids go to Small People Preschool while she's at work.

For some time, parents like Zazueta had little choice as to school choice for their children, as many of the kids at Small People Preschool utilize scholarships and government subsidies to attend the school.

"The scholarships cannot be transferred, so we can't just pick up and move these people," said Clute.

"I'm not going to change daycare, because I love this daycare," said Zazueta. "I love the teachers. I love everybody here. So I'm just going to take some time off, and go from there."

The school, however, managed to fight back, and reclaimed their original lease until they moved to the new location.

100 students attended classes at Small People Preschool's new facility on May 1.

Preschool in North Phoenix evicted from building

We first reported on the eviction woes facing a special preschool in North Phoenix, and on Apr. 3, eviction day finally arrived for Small People Preschool. FOX 10's Marissa Sarbak has more on how the eviction will impact the families the school serves.