How a fight over zoning unintentionally hurt Stamford child care providers


0

STAMFORD — The house at 70A Alvord Lane has been sitting empty for almost a year. The walls are painted milky yellow, the floor is covered in foam play pads and plastic crates are full of toys.

Gladys Contreras pays the rent nonetheless, since in a few months, she hopes the empty house will be a full-blown day care facility. Children will play in the yard, as part of a group day care facility, just like she’s always envisioned.

But getting there hasn’t been easy.

Child care providers, like Contreras, often struggle with the municipal barriers they say slow operators from opening bigger facilities or expanding existing ones. The problem has commandeered the attention of city and state officials alike, with everyone scrambling to find a solution to the lack of affordable, high-quality child care.

Unintended consequences

In Stamford, solving that problem has hit an unrelated impasse.

Changes to rules that would require fewer public hearings and approvals for new or expanded child care facilities were folded into an “omnibus text change” passed by the zoning board earlier this year.

The omnibus package, which included a myriad of other tweaks, including one that encouraged residential development in office buildings, ignited a months-long political storm in Stamford. The Board of Representatives this month repealed the zoning board approval, citing concerns over the office buildings section and the “process” used to pass it.

Because of that decision, some child care providers must continue to get special permissions to open facilities, especially in residential parts of Stamford.

While the permissions, some urban planners say, help minimize adverse impacts on neighborhoods, especially residential ones, advocates for the child care industry argue that the requirement is at worst crippling and at best redundant.

“One cannot operate child care in Connecticut without a license from (the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood), and their approval process is extensive,” Adam Cowing, an attorney with Yale Law School’s Community and Economic Development Clinic, told the Board of Representatives in May. “They vet providers; ensure compliance with local zoning, building, fire and health codes; and inspect every child care to ensure the health and safety of children.”

Cowing represented Contreras in her attempt to turn 70A Alvord Lane into a child care facility. Like her attorney, Contreras attempted to dissuade the Board of Representatives from rejecting the omnibus — and she wasn’t alone.

Owner Nichelle Waddell poses with Asher Ben Simon, 2, at Watch Me Grow Daycare in Stamford, Conn., on Thursday June 16, 2022. Child care providers, like Waddell, are flush with demand, but there's a problem for providers throughout Stamford. They argue that the local zoning process is more restrictive than the state licensing requirement.

Owner Nichelle Waddell poses with Asher Ben Simon, 2, at Watch Me Grow Daycare in Stamford, Conn., on Thursday June 16, 2022. Child care providers, like Waddell, are flush with demand, but there’s a problem for providers throughout Stamford. They argue that the local zoning process is more restrictive than the state licensing requirement.

Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media

Her sister Dora Ramos and Nichelle Waddell — both child care providers in Stamford — made almost identical arguments to the board and had nearly identical experiences navigating the permitting process. The process is expensive, intimidating and long, they say. None of the women expected the approvals process to be so cumbersome when they got into the industry.

Despite plans from federal and state officials attempting to fix America’s child care problem, they think the most pressing obstacles are at home, they said.

Racking up bills to pay the bills

Waddell knew that opening her North Stamford day care facility, Watch Me Grow Daycare, was chancy after spending years in the corporate finance world.

“I took a gamble so I could get approved, grow the business, support my family,” she said. It’s a gamble that was ultimately worthwhile, but not one that she fully understood when changing careers.

Waddell had to apply twice to expand her family day care into a group day care during the height of the pandemic. Family child care facilities are the smallest facilities in the state’s eyes. They can serve up to six children and are operated out of a person’s home. Group day cares are home-based but can serve up to 12 children.

Waddell said that she had to hire a lawyer to change her family facility into a group one, something that came at a financial cost. Though she secured approval in 2021, that approval came with a caveat from the city Zoning Board of Appeals, who said that all children must be shuttled to her facility and that children under 1 year old could not be shuttled. She spent another two months contesting that stipulation so she could serve the child of an existing client.

Nichelle Waddell, who runs Watch Me Grow Daycare, plays with Christian Carrington, 1, at the daycare in Stamford, Conn., on Thursday June 16, 2022. Child care providers, like Waddell, are flush with demand, but there's a problem for providers throughout Stamford. They argue that the local zoning process is more restrictive than the state licensing requirement.

Nichelle Waddell, who runs Watch Me Grow Daycare, plays with Christian Carrington, 1, at the daycare in Stamford, Conn., on Thursday June 16, 2022. Child care providers, like Waddell, are flush with demand, but there’s a problem for providers throughout Stamford. They argue that the local zoning process is more restrictive than the state licensing requirement.

Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media

Ramos’ story follows the same arc.


Like it? Share with your friends!

0

What's Your Reaction?

hate hate
0
hate
confused confused
0
confused
fail fail
0
fail
fun fun
0
fun
geeky geeky
0
geeky
love love
0
love
lol lol
0
lol
omg omg
0
omg
win win
0
win
adminadmin

0 Comments

Leave a Reply