Once upon a time, in a town north of Edmonton, there was a man who dreamed of building something magical.
After a year of construction, using $3 million from his own pocket, Robert Chauvet turned a Morinville parking lot into a scene out of a fairy tale. There?s a fantastical structure with a wavy roof, curved wooden doors and?as his story goes?a chimney squashed by a giant.
Photo: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson
?I?ve always been fascinated by the imagination and creative minds of children,? says the 71-year-old father, grandfather and retired owner of a construction company.
?Everybody builds houses. And whether you build 10 or 1,000, basically you?re just a house-builder. It doesn’t leave anything special behind.? Because Chauvet wanted children to enjoy his final building project in the town of 9,800, he had it designed as a daycare.  .related-article-block{display:inline-block;width:300px;padding:.5rem;margin-left:.5rem;float:right;border:1px solid #ccc}@media (max-width: 525px){.related-article-block{float:none;display:block;width:280px;margin:0 auto 2rem}}

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He rents it out to the Fable Child Care Centre, which opened in June.
?The kids always seem happy here,? says father Dave Brooks, as he helps two-year-old Hadley wiggle out of her jacket during a morning drop-off. Brooks thinks the daycare resembles more of a hobbit house from Lord of the Rings.
Photo: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson...