Bright Horizons looks at keeping BofA day care open

Bright Horizons, which manages Bank of America's 10 day care centers around the country, is examining whether it can keep any of the locations open now that the bank has said it will no longer fund them, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.

Bank of America employees have been told over the past few days that the bank will shut down the centers, including the one in Charlotte,  in order to focus on benefits that affect more workers.

Many bank employees who use the centers have been very upset by the changes, which come on top of a pension freeze and thousands of job cuts. Employees are also again being required to pay more for their health care coverage this year, several sources have said.

Bright Horizons was not immediately able to respond to a question about how quickly the company would be able to make a decision on its Charlotte location or any others.

Keeping the Charlotte center open would likely mean Bright Horizons would have to buy or lease the day care building on North Poplar Street from Bank of America, which owns the building.

The bank, then known as NCNB, bought the land and buildings from the Salvation Army for about $2 million in 1991. The day care was constructed and opened in November 1992. The land and building are now valued at more than $12.5 million, according to county property records.