Honorable Menlo Park Council Members, As a long time resident of Menlo Park, I am writing to thank you for working to maintain our city’s subsidized child care services and for not putting parents at risk of losing their jobs and incomes. Ensuring families continue to have access to high quality, affordable child care services is essential to building a vibrant, resilient community and goes a long way to fostering the economic growth we so desperately need as we recover from the negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on our city. In addition, quality early learning and care programs foster children’s social, emotional, intellectual and physical development and promote their readiness for school. The benefits of investing in early education are tremendous and long term. I do have serious concerns about proposing that chid care fees be raised above market rate, that surcharges be added and then, if the program is not able to maintain adequate enrollment numbers, the program would be closed. It is vitally important that child care services be maintained at affordable rates so families continue to have access. Please defer capital projects and use reserve funds to maintain this vital community service. In addition, proposing to close the Onetta Harris Community Center until the new facility is completed places an unfair burden on those in our community with the greatest need. We must do everything we can to put an end to the historic racial inequities that remain wide and persistent in Menlo Park. Please keep the community center open in order to continue providing services to Belle Haven residents. Both the Community Center and the child care program will have to adapt services to maintain necessary health and safety standards due to COVID-19 and we must fully support them in those efforts. Our city’s budget is really a moral document, one that reflects our community’s values. Thank you very much for your consideration, Louise Piper Received on Tue Jun 09 2020 - 15:55:31 PDT
