Fountain Valley / Central Orange County
Licensed centers in Fountain Valley line up on Slater Avenue (KinderCare at 9945, King of Glory Lutheran at 10280, Slater Montessori at 10316), Warner Avenue and Brookhurst Street, with the rest on church and school district sites. For tutoring, Fountain Valley Promenade on Brookhurst at Ellis already has Tutoring Club in two 1,200 sq ft suites next to Ralphs, Ross and T.J. Maxx. CDSS returns 14 licensed child care centers for the city, so the list of existing operators is short enough to map against any site you like.
Population
56,258
Median HHI
$115,237
Median age
44.4
Homeownership
64.8%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Primary retail corridors
Brookhurst Street · Magnolia Street · Warner Avenue · Talbert Avenue · Edinger Avenue
Specific shopping centers in Fountain Valley that already carry credible co-tenancy for this use. Listed in approximate order of fit.
NWC Brookhurst Street and Ellis Avenue
Anchors / key tenants: Ralphs, T.J. Maxx, Mimi's Cafe
First Washington Realty-owned community center on Brookhurst. Daily-needs grocery and value-tier soft goods anchor steady weekly traffic.
Existing operators are the most honest comp for whether a use can support Fountain Valley rents. These are publicly visible daycare and education space businesses currently trading in the market.
Fountain Valley KinderCare
9945 Slater Avenue, Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Licensed day care center, preschool capacity 84 per CDSS, open 6:30am to 6:30pm. KinderCare's own page lists the center as serving 6 weeks to 12 years.
Fountain Valley Montessori Center
18410 Brookhurst Street, Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Licensed day care center, capacity 144, ages 2 to 6. The CDSS record notes a yard waiver and one room used for a private elementary program. The address number falls inside the 18279 to 18461 Brookhurst range of Fountain Valley Promenade, though it is not on the owner's tenant list.
Slater Montessori Academy
10316 Slater Avenue, Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Licensed day care center, capacity 96, ages 2 to 6, with one room used for a private elementary school per CDSS.
Hilltop Nursery School
9685 Warner Avenue, Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Licensed day care center, capacity 46, a half day program (9:00am to 12:30pm) per CDSS. On Warner Avenue.
Tutoring Club
Fountain Valley Promenade, 18279-18461 Brookhurst Street (suites B2 and B3), Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Listed on First Washington Realty's tenant directory for the center in two 1,200 sq ft suites. A good size reference for a tutoring use in a grocery anchored center.
01
Fountain Valley Municipal Code 21.10.030 (Table 2-6) shows child day care centers as a conditional use permit in the C1, C2 and CM districts and not allowed in CP or M1. Confirm the district for the center you are looking at, since a CP office site will not work.
02
Section 21.30.020 defines a child day care center as a facility for fifteen or more children and sends it through the CUP process in Chapter 21.36. That section did not show separate city standards for play yards or drop-off, so expect those to be set as CUP conditions and by state licensing.
03
Table 2-6 also lists 'Schools, specialized training and education' and studios (art, music and similar) as a CUP in every commercial district. The table has no separate tutoring line, so ask planning staff in writing how they classify a learning center like Tutoring Club before assuming it is a by-right retail use.
04
Parking in Table 3-3 (21.22.040) for child day care is 1 space per employee plus 1 space per vehicle used by the business, and dance and art studios are 1 space per 200 sq ft. Tutoring is not listed, so the director sets the ratio under 21.22.040(c).
05
State licensing drives the footprint: 35 sq ft of indoor activity space per child (22 CCR 101238.3) and 75 sq ft of outdoor space per child inside a fence at least 4 feet high (22 CCR 101238.2). For an 84 child license like KinderCare on Slater that is 2,940 sq ft indoors and 6,300 sq ft outdoors. The CDSS record for Fountain Valley Montessori Center on Brookhurst shows a yard waiver, so ask CDSS early what it will accept on a tight retail site.
06
Every child care center needs a fire clearance (22 CCR 101171). Have the local fire authority review exiting for the suite during the LOI stage, not after lease signing.
Zoning, licensing, and demographic figures on this page come from the public records below. Codes and licenses change, so confirm with the city and the licensing agency before you sign.