Task force explores child-care options
The Record (New Westminster)
May 3, 2008

… According to a city staff report, New Westminster isn't alone, as most municipalities in Metro Vancouver face critical shortages in licensed child care. …

"These municipalities, through policy tools such as density bonusing and permissive zoning, favourable lease arrangements, grants and working relations with their school districts are achieving positive results," said a staff report. "The city can learn from these municipalities, while proactively working to access funding and other resources from the senior levels of government."

The child-care strategy task group has developed a list of possible policies and tools to help improve child care in the city.

Some ideas:

- Conducting a review of city-owned and -operated facilities to determine if there are underused spaces that could accommodate child-care programs.

- Establishing a child-care grant program.

- Granting density bonuses to developers in exchange for purpose-built facilities or cash contributions in lieu to a child-care development reserve fund.

- Developing a protocol where the city and school district work jointly on improving existing child-care spaces.

- Ensuring that the development of new municipal facilities and major renovations to existing ones consider building or incorporating spaces for child-care operation.

Another option to be considered would be permitting group child-care centres of up to 15 or 20 spaces as an outright use in all residential districts, which would mean no rezoning or public hearing would be necessary…."It's the least costly way of creating new child-care spaces," said senior social planner John Stark. "The costs would be borne by the operator."

Coun. Jonathan Cote said the city needs to take a proactive role in creating new spaces. Having attended the child-care forum, he said New Westminster can learn from some other municipalities

"This is definitely something we need to look at if we want to be attractive to young families," he said. "We need to be active and start implementing some of these policies that have been used in other municipalities."

Coun. Bob Osterman said council needs to work with the school district to address the need for before- and after-school care. He believes purpose-built facilities should be adjacent to every education facility.

When the city considers family daycares in neighbourhoods, Osterman believes they should be located near corners, not mid-block, as that seems to cause concerns for neighbours. He noted the majority of concerns centre around traffic, parking and pickup and delivery of children.

"It has to be the one issue when it come to young couples, you are at your wit's end to find daycare," he said.