Guest Editorial
A childcare revolution
BY SCOTT STRINGER
For too many New Yorkers, the American Dream is slipping further and further
away. The affordability crisis we’re currently facing is fueled by many
factors. But the cost of childcare — which can be more than $21,000 a year
for an infant — is one major driver that must be tackled with every tool we have.
A single mother with a full-time $15 minimum-wage job would have to spend
more than two-thirds of her income for a market-rate slot in a childcare center
(serving children up to age 3), leaving her with less than $850 a month for rent,
to put food on the table, pay medical bills and meet other basic needs. A mere 7
percent of families with infants and toddlers in the city get any government support
to offset those soaring costs.
In fact, half of our city’s neighborhoods are “childcare deserts,” with a ratio
of childcare capacity to children of less than 20 percent. Compared to the other
boroughs, Manhattan has among the fewest neighborhoods that meet that defi nition.
However, higher-income communities, like Gramercy and Chelsea, have a
higher supply of childcare centers while lower-income communities tend to have
access to more family daycare providers, generally a more affordable option for
families. In Washington Heights, there are only enough center spaces for 1 percent
of neighborhood children under 2.
Research shows 80 percent of brain development occurs before age 3, so it is
imperative that, during these critical years, every child has a chance to succeed.
That’s why I unveiled NYC Under 3 to deliver the largest local investment in
childcare in the United States for families with children under age 3 and to bring
the childcare tab down to zero for families who need the most support. Because, in
the richest city in the richest country in the world, every family should have access
to quality affordable childcare. Together with state Senator Brad Hoylman, Queens
state Senator Jessica Ramos and Brooklyn Assemblymember Latrice Walker, we’re
proud to have introduced legislation to make this investment possible.
NYC Under 3 would triple the number of infants and toddlers in publicly-funded
care from about 23,000 to 84,000 and empower roughly 20,000 parents —
mostly mothers — to join or re-enter the workforce, injecting an additional $540
million a year in wages to our city’s economy.
Let’s open doors, so that every child in every community has a fair chance.
Stringer is New York City Comptroller.
Publisher of The Villager, Villager Express, Chelsea Now,
Downtown Express and Manhattan Express
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA SCHNEPS
LINCOLN ANDERSON
GABE HERMAN
MICHELE HERMAN
BOB KRASNER
TEQUILA MINSKY
MARY REINHOLZ
PAUL SCHINDLER
JOHN NAPOLI
MARCOS RAMOS
CLIFFORD LUSTER
(718) 260-2504
CLUSTER@CNGLOCAL.COM
MARVIN ROCK
GAYLE GREENBURG
JIM STEELE
JULIO TUMBACO
PUBLISHER’S LIABILITY FOR ERROR ELIZABETH POLLY
The Publisher shall not be liable for slight changes
or typographical errors that do not lessen the value
of an advertisement. The publisher’s liability for
others errors or omissions in connection with an
advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the
advertisement in any subsequent issue.
Published by Schneps Media
One Metrotech North, 10th floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Phone: (718) 260-2500
Fax: (212) 229-2790
On-line: www.thevillager.com
E-mail: news@thevillager.com
© 2019 Schneps Media
New York Press Association
Member of the National
Newspaper Association
Member of the
Member of the
Minority Women Business Enterprise
PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER
CEO & CO-PUBLISHER
EDITOR IN CHIEF
REPORTER
CONTRIBUTORS
ART DIRECTORS
ADVERTISING
CIRCULATION SALES MNGR.
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES
PHOTO BY ROBERT OTTER
This photo, looking east along Bleecker St., shows the Bleecker St. Cinema
and Washington Square Village, in the background, to the east of LaGuardia
Place. The “superblock” apartment complex — today owned by New York
University — was built in the late 1950s, while the 1959 fi lm “Room at the
Top” is billed as a “classic” on the theater marquee, which, combined with
the vintage cars, likely dates the photo to the 1960s. The Bleecker St. Cinema
went out of business on Sept. 6, 1990.
STORY: “‘Anti-vaxxers’ try to mob rent laws forum” (posted on
thevillager.com 7/29/19)
SUMMARY: More than 150 protesters — decrying the New York
State Legislature’s removal of the religious exemption for childhood
vaccinations — tried to crash an Upper East Side town hall meeting
hosted by local politicians about the recent changes to the state’s
rent laws. Only a few protesters made it inside the crowded forum,
but they were disruptive and prevented tenants from learning fully
about the rent laws.
REACH: 326 as of 7/31/19.
12 August 1, 2019 TVG Schneps Media
/www.thevillager.com
/www.thevillager.com
link
link
/thevillager.com
link
link