Adequate space for local preschool programs, or rather the lack of it, is an issue likely to getattention in the near future.

Elected officials and leaders in education and business who attended a community forum on universal preschool Wednesday agreed that creating more space - renovated or new - needs to be made a priority.

With the legislature again funding programs - $40 million was appropriated statewide last spring - officials worry that the scarcity of space will result in a missed opportunity.

"We have to start immediately to find a place so that when the state allocates money we will be ready," said Frances Wolski, school board vice president and one of about 30 participants in the forum at Central Connecticut State University's Institute for Technology and Business Development. "We need to put our heads together - whether you're a provider, legislator or business leader - to get space for these programs. We can't put it off for five years. It's got to be done now."

Topping the list of possible sites is the former Israel Putnam Elementary School. Wolski said school officials have been talking with city leaders about the building, the purchase of which they must approve.

Mayor Timothy Stewart agreed that the site on Osgood Avenue would be a good one. Easing space concerns at New Britain High School is the first priority of a task force of school and municipal officials, and it is looking at the building, Stewart said. The building has been in private hands since the city closed it about 20 years ago, but may become available because of the death of its owner, he said.

"It lends itself to discussions," Stewart said. "It is a perfect site for an additional school. I think we can work toward that end."

The forum was one of many planned statewide as part of a push launched last fall by the state Department of Education for universal preschool. Thanks to the infusion of state money - $400,000 was earmarked for New Britain - and a new governor championing the cause, the focus has shifted from one of selling the concept to figuring out how to make it happen.

Merrill Gay, coordinator of the Discovery Collaborative, a grant-funded initiative dedicated to increasing the supply of quality childcare in the city, organized the event and presented statistics underscoring the benefits of making quality preschool programs available to every 3- and 4-year old in the city. Children who attend preschool are less likely to repeat a grade or drop out and more likely to graduate from high school and avoid the criminal justice system, he said. Every dollar spent on quality early care can save $4 to $7 in later costs, Gay said.

Preschool is increasingly seen as the key to closing the much talked about "achievement gap" separating poor urban children from their more affluent suburban peers. According to figures compiled by the city School Readiness Council, Gay said, more than half, or 55 percent, of the 2,039 3- and 4-year-olds in the city arrive in kindergarten without preschool. The figures shed light on why 72 percent of city fourth-graders failed to meet goal on last year's Connecticut Mastery Test.

Gay estimates that there are more than 830 city children in need of preschool. To accommodate them, New Britain needs another 28 classrooms in addition to six recently added at Lincoln School, Gay said.

Other forum speakers included Janice Gruendel, senior policy adviser on early childhood issues to Gov. M. Jodi Rell, and Superintendent Doris Kurtz. Kurtz welcomed the support.

"I'm encouraged to see you all here," Kurtz said. "I know we are partners in this endeavor. We must see faces and names behind the statistics and continue to work at this."