Garderie Tunney's Daycare has been operating in the Statistics Canada building at Tunney's Pasture for almost 30 years, but an increase in its yearly rent to $150,000 could mean the end for the non-profit charity.

Until 2014, the daycare occupied the space rent-free thanks to a federal subsidy.

That changed when the Conservative government implemented policies that introduced steep increases in rent for tenants in government-owned buildings, according to Olivier Marois, president of the daycare's parent-run board of directors.

Olivier Marois, president of the daycare's parent-run board of directors, says he's hoping the federal government will intervene to renegotiate the rent increase. (CBC)

"When we lost the subsidy we were given approximately six months ... to start paying rent, so we negotiated the best agreement that we could at the time which was a two-phased increase," said Marois.

The daycare began paying about $82,000 in rent per year in 2014, which will increase to $150,000 as of July 1 this year.

The bilingual facility is currently functioning at capacity, looking after 49 children, including infants as young as three months. It also offers subsidized spaces for low-income parents.

'Child care spaces in Ottawa are in short supply already'

Marois said he had hoped to renegotiate the lease when the Liberal government came into power because they promoted a platform which highlighted gender equality and child care.

"I don't think that any charity, non-profit organization that works in child care, can afford this," he said.

Dominique Simoneau-Ritchie says she's hoping to continue getting French-language daycare for her son in her neighbourhood. (CBC)

If Public Services and Procurement Canada doesn't decrease the substantial spike in rent, Marois said the daycare will be forced to increase its fees, which will likely lead to its closure.

"We know that child care spaces in Ottawa are in short supply already, so it will definitely cause a lot of problems for parents within the community," he said.

Dominique Simoneau-Ritchie has been sending her 16-month-old son Wyatt Poirier to the daycare for four months. She did a lot of research to find a space for her child that provided bilingual services, she said.

"Garderie Tunney's was my first choice because I'm a Francophone and it's extremely important to me that my son learn French," she said.

Simoneau-Ritchie already pays $200 to $300 more than her friends to send her child to a bilingual daycare and any further increase in cost would mean she would have to send her child elsewhere. Parents with children under the age of 18 months pay about $1,700, while parents with toddlers pay $1,300 a month and pre-school parents pay $1,150.

"If this place closes down my son will have to go to English daycare. There is no alternative that I have found in my neighbourhood which is really sad to me because I want to preserve my French heritage," she said.

Marois said he's hoping the government will intervene so the Tunney's Daycare doesn't end up like the Tupper Tots daycare, which moved out of the federal Sir Charles Tupper Building due to the rent increase and then abruptly closed in 2014 after declaring bankruptcy.