West Lafayette eyes site near SK hynix for early childhood ed center
Purdue Research Foundation gives 3 acres to city along Kalberer Road for that project. Plus, the latest seasonal produce finds in this week’s Market Report. And Dining Divas check out Los Chaparritos.
Thanks to sponsor Stuart & Branigin for continued support of the Based in Lafayette reporting project.
WEST LAFAYETTE EYES SITE NEAR SK HYNIX FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION CENTER
West Lafayette started solidifying plans to build an early childhood education center with an agreement approved Wednesday that would have Purdue Research Foundation donating a little over three acres along Kalberer Road to the city.
The land, next door to West Lafayette Fire Station No. 3 and across from the John Dennis Wellness Center, would be home to a center that could start with 100 preschoolers and eventually expand to handle nearly triple that amount, according to details laid out Wednesday morning for the West Lafayette Redevelopment Commission.
West Lafayette officials had been signaling that the spot along the northern edge of the city would be right since August 2024, when it finished a joint study on early child education options with the West Lafayette and Tippecanoe school corporations. Part of the West Lafayette Redevelopment Commission’s spending plan for 2025 included $250,000 for design work on a center.
That study – which focused on areas primarily served by West Lafayette, Klondike, Burnett Creek and Battle Ground elementaries – used parent surveys to show there was a shortage of between 75 and 125 early childhood education slots in that area in and north and west of West Lafayette. Even then, city officials said they believed that estimate was low and were ready to invest in a center built by the city and run by a third party as a way to address a shortage of child care slots.
West Lafayette Mayor Erin Easter said the city looked at other locations.
“But we have a lot of confidence in this spot,” Easter said. “It's located between both of our school districts. It's in a population center. There are a lot of other amenities in the area that would help support child care facilities.”
SK hynix officials frequently mentioned having child care near its facility during its recent controversial rezoning fight, settled earlier in May with a 6-3 vote by the West Lafayette City Council. Easter said the timing isn’t timed to the pending arrival of SK hynix’s $3.87 billion advanced chip packaging facility just to the north of that site. Part of the South Korean semiconductor company’s federal funding through the CHIPS and Science Act includes provisions about how it would address child care for a project expected to bring as many as 1,000 jobs once production starts in 2028.
“What we're building is not specific for them,” Easter said. “I think that if they wanted to partner with us, that's an opportunity for those future wings. But we have existing needs in the city, even beyond what SK’s needs would be.”
No timeline for design or construction were offered Wednesday.
Based on data from the study and from local forums on child care in the past two years, of the 13,000 children ages 0-5 in Tippecanoe County, 9,000 need child care. Tippecanoe County had 6,000 slots available in existing regulated centers. That left a gap of 3,000. Beyond available space, issues of turnover in a child care industry that paid lower wages contributed to the shortage of slots for children.
Larry Oates, redevelopment commission president, said PRF’s donation and city construction could help cut overhead and the price of operation for a third-party provider.
West Lafayette’s move on child care and early childhood education comes amid a broader conversation across Tippecanoe County, where the topic is being treated in part as a question of economic development, as Greater Lafayette continues to recruit large business. City and county officials on both sides of the Wabash River have called for solutions that would help Greater Lafayette stand out as it does that sort of recruiting, while also finding answers for young families already navigating a tight market.
The land offered by PRF is part of a 13-acre strip along Kalberer Road, between Yeager Road and Salisbury Street, that was rezoned earlier in May for neighborhood business uses. That land is just south of 121 acres rezoned for heavy industrial use on SK hynix’s preferred location for its 430,000-square-foot R&D and manufacturing facility.
Welcome back to Based in Lafayette’s newest feature, with a look at what’s in season this week at Greater Lafayette’s farmers markets.
GIVE THESE VEGETABLES A SECOND LOOK. OH! AND STRAWBERRIES ARE HERE
By Carol Bangert / For Based in Lafayette
A ripple of excitement ran through my house when I mentioned that I spotted salad turnips and kohlrabi at the farmers market. “Excitement” may not be the right word, but I’m running with it today. More on that in a moment, though, because there’s even more exciting news out of the farmers markets right now: Strawberries have arrived, and they are gorgeous.
If you’ve been waiting for strawberries, you likely have plans for them already. From shortcakes and pies to jams and preserves, strawberries are a simple spring darling that rarely disappoints. Storing those little darlings is a bit more complicated.
Depending on who you ask, the berries should be stored on the counter, especially if you’re eating them in a day or two. Pop them in the fridge for longer periods. Some vendors I spoke to say the berries should be washed only when ready to use; others say to wash before you move them to the refrigerator. Some farmers suggest storing them in airtight containers, while others recommend ventilated bags. I’ve read that a short soak in a solution of vinegar and water can prolong the berry’s freshness.
Thankfully, none of these issues posed a problem at our house – the strawberries were gone a few hours after I brought them home. The takeaway here: The time is ripe to enjoy one of spring’s greatest pleasures.
Now, about those salad turnips and kohlrabi.
Salad turnips are not young versions of turnips. They are smaller than turnips and have a sweet, mild taste that’s open to lots of culinary possibilities. They don’t need peeling, unlike turnips, and are great eaten raw, grilled or braised. To store salad turnips, first cut off the greens (which also can be braised), and store the turnip roots in a produce bag in the fridge; store the greens separately. Both will keep one to two weeks.
Kohl who?
I’ve always been intrigued by kohlrabi, but to be honest, I’ve only cooked with it a few times. The odd-shaped vegetable might stump a first-time user – is it kale? fennel? cabbage? – but don’t let that stop you. Kohlrabi is crunchy like an apple but tastes like cabbage with a little pep.
Carrie Austin of Austin Acre recommends cutting the bulbs into planks and grilling them; stew the greens as you would collards. Cut kohlrabi into matchsticks and serve with guacamole or hummus. I added diced kohlrabi to potato salad in place of celery, and it added great crunch and zing. To store kohlrabi, cut the greens and stems from the core. Store the core in a perforated bag in the crisper drawer of the fridge. The greens and stems can be stored in a plastic bag in the fridge as well. Both will last a few weeks.
Salad turnips and kohlrabi are around for a while, but not every farmers market vendor sells them. You may not run across these unassuming vegetables in the grocery store, so why not grab some fresh at the farmers market? They deserve a spot in your culinary arsenal.
Other late-May vegetables at the market include:
Red and green onions
Parsnips
Radishes
Bok choy
Greens (kale, mustard, arugula)
Herbs, both plants and cuttings (Chives, spearmint, oregano, sage, basil, parsley, thyme, lavender)
Baby carrots
I was surprised to stumble upon green beans, zucchini and cucumbers at Beck’s Family Farm. Owner Adam Beck says he started the seeds in March in a high tunnel green house at his Attica farm. I’ll have more on these summer staples during their peak season beginning in late spring.
Market days/hours
West Lafayette Farmers Market: 3:30-7:30 p.m., Wednesdays, May through October This year marks the 20th anniversary of the West Lafayette market. The market is held at Cumberland Park in West Lafayette with more than 50 vendors.
Purdue Farmers Market: 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Thursdays, May through October. The Purdue farmers market is held on the Memorial Mall on Purdue’s campus. This market is a concession-heavy market that allows students, faculty and staff to have lunch options in a unique outdoor setting.
Lafayette Farmers Market: 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturdays, May through October, on Fifth Street between Columbia Street and mid-block to Ferry Street and Main Street between Fourth and Sixth streets.
Carol Bangert has been a regular at Greater Lafayette farmers markets for more than 20 years. From May through October she’ll scout out in-season produce at the markets and report back on fresh finds and how to use them.
DINING DIVAS AND DUDES: CHECKING IN AT LOS CHAPARRITOS
Dining Divas and Dudes is a team that has been reporting and rating new restaurants, hidden gems, international fare and updated menus from old favorites for years now via Visit Lafayette-West Lafayette at homeofpurdue.com. Here at Based in Lafayette, we feature some of Dining Divas and Dudes’ latest finds.
Recently, they checked out the growing food truck/brick-and-mortar empire of Los Chaparritos.
The upshot as they settled in at the 1185 Sagamore Parkway W. location in West Lafayette: “Are you in the mood for some food truck tacos, but also want to sit at a table? You are in luck! … Every last one of us was so happy with this place. Rest assured, you can expect freshly prepared, perfectly cooked, flavor fiestas here on the regular. There is a chance you’ll have to wait for a table, because there wasn’t an empty seat in the house.”
Los Chaparritos has a second location at 3540 Indiana 38 East, along with two food trucks typically stationed in Lafayette in the parking lots of Menards, 2740 S. Creasy Lane, and Sagamore at 26 Shopping Center, 311 Sagamore Parkway N.
Read more from the full Dining Divas and Dudes review here: Los Chaparritos: A Local Favorite with Bold Taste.
THIS AND THAT/OTHER READS
Indiana Capital Chronicle reporter Madelyn Hanes had this from Indianapolis: “The first five graduates from Purdue University Global Law School took their new attorney’s oath Tuesday morning, marking a milestone for both the school and Indiana’s legal system. … The ceremony follows a July 2024 amendment to Indiana’s Rules of Admission and Discipline Rule 13 that allowed graduates of non-American Bar Association accredited, Indiana-based online law schools to sit for the Indiana bar exam.” Here’s more: “‘Expanding access to justice’: First five Purdue Global Law School students admitted to Indiana bar.”
J&C reporter Ron Wilkins was monitoring the trial of Deonta Johnson, accused of neglect in a 2023 case when a 5-year-old found a gun in their southern Lafayette apartment and accidentally shot and killed his 1-year-old brother with it. The boy’s mother, Shatia Welch, already pleaded guilty earlier this year to neglect of dependent resulting in serious bodily injury and is serving a six-year prison sentence. Here’s more from the opening of the trial in Tippecanoe Superior Court 2: “Trial starts for Lafayette father charged with neglect of his son resulting in death.”
Thanks, again, to sponsor Stuart & Branigin for continued support of the Based in Lafayette reporting project.
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Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.
Today I was at the WL armer's market and the veteran making balloons was out there in the wind with no business. If you're ever there, make sure to have him make you a balloon. He also has quite a few interesting lessons/jokes!
My grandparents, who immigrated from what was to become and was Czechoslovakia, always grew kohlrabi. To me, they are a better, sweeter turnip. We peeled them, sliced them and ate them raw. Store the slices in water in the refrigerator.