Ballard House, Portland's free-standing birthing center, is winding down its operations as founder and owner Sarah Levy prepares to turn the building over.

"We're closing on the sale in mid-July," Levy says. "It's an alternative school that has bought the building, which is really cool."

The school, she says, will be geared at "0 to 6-year-olds" who will do "yoga and meditation, music and art."

The Ballard House facilitated its last natural birth at the end of May.

Back in January, Levy said she was going to close the birthing center because fewer families were using the services.

Also, working 60-hour weeks to run the center on her own while raising a family was wearing on Levy. She said she could not afford to hire staff, with the center averaging just four births a month - down from a peak of nine.

The center's client base significantly dropped off more than two years ago as Levy looked to replace a midwife practice.

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Now, moving onto menopause.

I'm working on a story about how women navigate through the treatment choices out there for menopausal symptoms. Interested in chatting? E-mail me at jhuang@pressherald.com or call me at 791-6364.

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