Duluth in ‘near crisis’ due to child care shortage, task force says

DULUTH — A child care task force convened a year ago by former Mayor Emily Larson unveiled its recommendations at a news conference Tuesday to address what the group called a “near crisis.”

Three daycares will close this year and four last year, and only one will open. The task force report says the city has just over 3,000 daycare spaces, but 4,200 children six and under whose parents work. Nearly 30 percent of available daycares do not accept infants.

“There are no quick or easy answers” for a profession that needs to be elevated in importance, said April Westman, owner of Aunty’s Child Care in east Duluth.

“Even though the child care model is broken and unsustainable, it has long survived, largely because of women doing invisible work for less money, less respect and less trust than they deserve,” she said.

Other problems include low wages, licensing and regulatory barriers, staff-to-child ratios, facility standards and academic qualifications. Without adequate staff, facilities cannot operate, providers said, and many are lost to higher wages elsewhere.

These problems mean parents are withdrawing from the workforce or choosing to live elsewhere, said Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce President Matt Baumgartner.

The task force, led by Elissa Hansen of Northspan and Tony Sertich of the Northland Foundation, recommends that the city create a marketing campaign that prioritizes the child care sector as critical to the economy; fully fund or expand a child care training program; and advocate for policies that support the development of new center facilities and for grants and assistance to ease the burden on providers and parents.

Mayor Roger Reinert said even those not personally affected by the issue should care because future growth depends on a family-friendly work environment.