Across York County, parents are searching for reliable child care. For many, in-home programs are the only option that fits their schedule, location, and budget. But starting an in-home child care program isn’t always a straightforward process. David Gonzalez, Director of Economic Initiatives with the York County Economic Alliance (YCEA), is trying to change that.
Working alongside Community Connections for Children (CCC), Every Child Has Opportunities (ECHO), supports early childhood education in York County, YCEA is embarking on a partnership with the county’s 72 municipalities to make local zoning and permitting processes more child care-friendly.
“Supporting in-home child care is one of the creative solutions that we have for addressing our broader workforce challenges that we have throughout the county,” David says. “Municipalities are on the front lines of that subject because it comes down to the local policymakers and our municipal halls throughout the county.”
Together, the YCEA, CCC, and ECHO are collaborating with municipal leaders on how they can be powerful partners in making early childhood education more accessible and how small policy shifts can lead to big opportunities for families and providers alike.
Fixing a patchwork approach
York County has 30 home-based Department of Human Services (DHS) certified providers who serve about 300 children. These sites fill a critical child care gap, especially in neighborhoods where child care centers don’t exist or don’t meet the needs of shift workers and single parents. Starting an in-home program, however, quickly can become tied up in red tape.
“If an individual wants to start an in-home child care program, they have to go to their individual municipality,” David says. “That’s the way our commonwealth works. They have to go through that individual process, and because we have 72 municipalities, each individual municipality has their own process in which including navigating zoning policies and codes.”
The zoning of a desired location as industrial, residential, or mixed-use impacts whether a home-based program can operate there. This patchwork approach can increase costs and create confusion, deterring qualified providers from entering the field.
A township willing to listen
David and the ECHO team at CCC and the YCEA are working on a comprehensive plan to standardize policies across the county. By the end of 2025, his goal is to have a list of recommendations to help streamline policies and applications for in-home child care programs, among other key economic competitiveness challenges.
One municipality that’s helping to pave the way is Spring Garden Township, where Zoning Officer Dawn Hansen has made it a priority to work with, rather than against, child care providers.
“They’re very important,” she says of home-based programs. “We have a lot of working parents. We have a lot of people that live and work in the township and drive through the township, so we need to make sure we have plenty of child care available for those people.”
Spring Garden Township allows in-home child care for up to six unrelated children in any residential zone. Individuals and organizations can apply for variances before the Zoning Hearing Board to expand the number of children.
Dawn’s goal is to try to make options available, simplify the process, and listen to every applicant. David sees that flexibility as essential to countywide success.
“All of our municipalities play a role in smart development,” he says.
Real barriers, real lives
Zoning isn’t just about policy; it’s about people. David and Dawn acknowledged that the scarcity of 24-hour child care in York County is a concern, especially for those who work third shifts in manufacturing and health care. York County has only one site that offers round-the-clock care. But getting approval for such an operation can be a struggle. Pushback from neighbors can stop an application in its tracks.
In her township, Dawn recently oversaw a zoning hearing case in which the applicant wanted to open a 24-hour in-home child care program in a residential neighborhood for up to 12 children. Typically, such a program can serve only six children without a variance.
“The residents had a little bit of a problem with that,” she says. “I loved what she was offering. She wanted to offer it for 24-hour care so that the parents that are working in second and third shifts would have child care, but it wasn’t really conducive to the neighborhood.”
Still, Dawn’s openness to those discussions is something David appreciates as he works with municipal partners at every level to come up with solutions.
‘All about planning for the future’
Spring Garden Township is finalizing its updated comprehensive plan, which Dawn says will guide zoning considerations. She encourages her peers in other municipalities to examine their zoning ordinances to determine how they can better meet the needs of their residents.
“We want to make sure that in the next 10 years we’re helping the area grow and we’re making opportunities more available,” she says. “This is all about planning for the future.”
Every Child Has Opportunities is an early childhood education initiative in York County, Pennsylvania, led by Community Connections for Children and York County Economic Alliance. Funding partners include WellSpan Health, the J. William Warehime Foundation, the Powder Mill Foundation, United Way of York County, the Kinsley Foundation, and the York County Community Foundation.
For more information on ECHO’s grant programs, visit www.echoyork.org/grants-and-programs.