EVERETT—The Snohomish County Council unanimously passed an ordinance on Wednesday, March 19, aimed at eliminating barriers and restrictions for new childcare centers to open county-wide.
Ordinance 25-015, sponsored by Councilmembers Nate Nehring and Jared Mead, will do this through simplified zoning codes and streamline the permitting process for childcare centers, two barriers leading childcare industry professionals have identified to be setbacks in meeting the county’s needs.
“I appreciate my council colleagues for recognizing the need to address the childcare shortage in Snohomish County,” said Council Chair Nate Nehring. “While there is more work to do at the state and local level to increase the availability of quality, affordable childcare, this ordinance is a step in the right direction.”
Snohomish County is one of the worst areas for childcare access in Washington State, comparative to the number of children who need them, according to County Executive Dave Somers, with an estimated 80% of residents living in an extreme “childcare desert.”
According to Child Care Aware, there are 62 slots of childcare in the county for every 100 infants, toddlers, or preschoolers which is far below the state average of 79 slots per 100 children.
“Our county has been designated a ‘childcare desert’ by the state, which makes it clear that families here need more options,” said Councilmember Jared Mead. “This ordinance is a meaningful way to support working parents and strengthen our local workforce.”
Snohomish County is only providing high quality childcare services to 22.6% of preschoolers living under 60% of the state’s median income.
Leading up into Wednesday’s vote, the County Council hosted a panel discussion with childcare industry experts to gain insights into their challenges and lend their support to local solutions for childcare expansion efforts.
That panel discussion, which took place Tuesday, March 18 – one day before the council approved the ordinance – featured Patsy Cudaback, Chief Operating Officer for Snohomish County YMCA, Marcy Volmer, Chief Operating Officer with the Boys and Girls Club, Debbie Carlson, Representative for the Snohomish County Early Learning Leadership Coalition, and Jason Turner with Mill Creek Preschool.
These childcare providers charge anywhere from $400 to $700 a month for childcare services. Carlson noted that her organization has seen statistics that Snohomish County residents spend about 15%-35% of their annual income on childcare.
Separate to zoning restrictions limiting the number of childcare centers that can open, and often astringent permitting requirements, Marcy Volmer explained that another challenge her organization faces is finding suitable staff with appropriate qualifications and being able to attract/retain staff with competitive wages within their scope of resources.
Most childcare educators are paid an average salary of $40,000 compared to K-12 teachers with a salary of $91,000 making it extremely difficult to hire, and retain, talented childcare staff, Cudaback added.
Rising operating costs have played a factor in increasing costs for childcare services while limiting the salaries many childcare professionals can pay their staff.
Additionally, Cudaback said there’s the issue of available space to provide adequate childcare. YMCA currently has 32 different locations around Snohomish County but even that’s not enough to meet the region’s needs. YMCA currently has about 150 children on the waiting list awaiting access to childcare.
“We don’t have enough space and we can’t hire qualified staff to be there to run the childcare center,” said Cudaback.
Cudaback continued that it comes down to licensing as certain licenses, depending on school, only allot a certain amount of children who can be enrolled in childcare services at any given time.
“It really depends on the school and what the licensing capacity is for that school,” said Cudaback.
Snohomish County YMCA is currently building a new early learning facility in Marysville to address these issues.
Debbie Carlson added that more family childcare providers have been closing compared to childcare centers, leading to a disproportionate number of childcare centers to family providers.
According to Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD) data, Snohomish County lost 25 percent of its childcare workforce during the pandemic, which represents more than 1,100 providers.
Three years ago, the Snohomish County Council approved allocating $7.5 million of the County’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars for childcare and early learning facilities across the county.
Councilman Mead, co-sponsor of the ordinance that passed Wednesday, took that one step further by requesting to fund a program at Sno-Isle Tech that would prepare high school aged students the necessary training, certifications, and experience to enter the childcare workforce.
“Sno-Isle TECH is so excited to partner with Snohomish County to create a program that addresses the shortage of early childhood educators in our county,” said Wes Allen, Director, Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center. “Through this partnership, we look to prepare our graduating students to address the deficit while getting them to college with the high school credits and industry recognized credentials that will positively impact their future.”
The program focuses on preparing high school students for careers in Early Childhood Education and Para Educator roles. Students complete 120 classroom hours in courses aligned with Everett Community College Early Childhood Education Initial Certification curriculum to support dual enrollment and ensure that students are meeting the requirements for the Washington State Early Childhood Education Initial Certificate. Students in this first cohort get in-classroom experience at Pathfinder Kindergarten Center, which is part of the Mukilteo School District.
Author: Kienan Briscoe
