The VIP Plaza on Route 1 in Scarborough is undergoing a renovation that will soon turn it into a family-oriented shopping center with a school for infants to kindergarten-aged children as the anchor.

Dr. Steven Brier, the executive director of the Little Dolphin School in Westbrook, is stepping into the role of developer. Brier, a principal in Dolphin Marketplace LLC, bought the VIP Plaza to help fund the nonprofit school.

The new Little Dolphin School will move into the old B-Fit Complete Fitness building in May. It will remain there until a new and larger school is completed behind the plaza, said Brier, a project he estimates will take about two years. The other part of the plaza will be renovated and turned into retail space. By leasing out the space, said Brier, he can help fund the school.

On Nov. 24, the Jean Jungle, a designer jeans store, opened. Brier is negotiating with a children’s consignment clothing store, and there will also be a gourmet foods store that hosts wine tasting parties.

The Little Dolphin School, which opened in 1999 in Westbrook, has full-day infant, toddler, pre-kindergarten and private kindergarten classes for about 160 kids. If parents are looking for just day care, said Shannon Silvia, education director, Little Dolphin is not the place.

“By far, we offer quality early childhood education,” said Silvia. “We definitely offer things you wouldn’t see elsewhere.”

“We feel very strongly about giving all children the opportunity of the early childhood education program,” said Brier. “So many parents have to settle with a sub-par program because they’re so few and far in between.”

For example, said Brier, Little Dolphin sets itself apart by requiring all teachers to have a four-year education degree. The same is required for assistant teachers in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classes.

Silvia has been with Little Dolphin since it opened in Westbrook, and is looking forward to seeing the second location built in Scarborough, which she expects to fill fast. In 1999, said Silvia, the school opened with a handful of kids, but filled to capacity, about 160 children, within a year.

Brier, a physician who formerly had a private sports medicine practice in New York, expects the Scarborough school to be equally as successful.

“When we opened in June of 1999, we couldn’t hire teachers fast enough,” said Brier. “We were overwhelmed. We knew then that people were craving a better education experience.”

Jean Jungle owner Carol Cronin said choosing to include her store in the Little Dolphin Plaza was an easy decision.

“The minute I sat down with Steven I just knew,” said Cronin. “I haven’t felt nervous about this, it just felt right. Everything fell into place.

Cronin, who currently travels around New England selling designer frames to eyeglass vendors, thought that fast-growing Scarborough was a good place to open her designer jeans store. The idea for the jungle theme, she said, came out of brainstorming during her long drives.

Her target customers are men and women over 30. She also sells stylish belts, jewelery, sunglasses, watches and younger jean fashions. Cronin hopes to offer customers jean brands found in places like New York that are hard or impossible to find in Maine.

Originally from Maine, Cronin moved to New York and Colorado, though she kept coming back to Maine and eventually settled in Scarborough.

“This is something I thought I would really enjoy,” said Cronin, who will spend her weekends at the store and her weekdays on the road. During the week, her new employee Alice Goodwin will manage the store for Cronin.

The Jean Jungle has about 600 pairs of jeans, said Cronin, a large collection for an independent store. The store will soon have a small lounge area for spouses and friends of shoppers to use.

“I think the Jean Jungle is a friendly, welcoming environment,” said Cronin.

The Route 1 VIP Plaza will soon be transformed into the home of the Little Dolphin School and family oriented retail stores.The Little Dolphin School in Westbrook will soon open a second school on Route 1 in Scarborough.The Little Dolphin School offers early childhood education to infants, toddlers, preschool and kindergarten aged children.