City urges support for daycare
Comox Valley Echo
Oct 16 2009
By: Philip Round

The provincial and federal governments need to adequately support daycares so people - especially those with low incomes - can get out to work.

That's the view of Courtenay City Council, which this week supported a motion presented by Coun. Ronna-Rae Leonard to press the issue.

The council recently decided it would not give discretionary property tax concessions to daycares in the city because it found it impossible to work out a fair way of treating commercial, charitable and home-based facilities….

The council resolved to write to senior governments in Victoria and Ottawa "to alert them to the financial challenges facing daycares in our community, resulting in repeated requests for property tax exemptions."

The motion added: "Senior governments be informed that we, as local government, are challenged to equitably support all daycares, whether for profit or not, and whether in home or institutions.

"Council requests that senior governments address this issue by instituting equitable programs to adequately support daycares to ensure that people, especially low income earners, can afford to work in our community."…

And Coun. Manno Theos said there was always a lot of talk around election time about supporting daycares, but not enough action afterwards….