Sitka commission urges municipal steps to address childcare shortage, offers elder-care recommendations

The Health Needs and Human Services Commission on Jan. 28 told the Sitka City and Borough Assembly that limited childcare availability is harming families, employers and the community’s demographic stability and urged the assembly to take municipal action to support local childcare programs.

"Sitka's working parents are struggling to maintain their jobs or attain a job due to lack of available childcare," the commission said in presenting its prioritized report, calling childcare one of its two principal goals for 2024–25.

The commission framed the problem as threefold: not enough affordable childcare slots for current residents, negative effects on the local economy, and demographic impacts including lower school enrollment and fewer births. The report’s authors said the pandemic worsened an already fragile childcare business model and that many local programs remain financially unsustainable without new revenue sources beyond tuition.

Why it matters: The commissioners said shortages in childcare reduce workforce participation and place pressure on local employers, which in turn affects Sitka’s economy and population trends. The commission asked the assembly to consider near-term municipal actions that could stabilize the childcare sector while a broader, communitywide strategy is developed.

Key recommendations and next steps - Seek dedicated local revenue: The commission recommended exploring an alcohol tax ordinance to fund existing childcare and early education programs and suggested developing a memorandum of agreement with AUIC to manage distribution and safeguards for such funds. - Utility relief for centers: The commission recommended a municipal utility discount or subsidy for licensed childcare centers to reduce fixed operating costs. - Facility strategy: The report asks the city to identify school- or city-owned properties that could host a community-supported childcare center. - Employer incentives: The commission recommended investigating incentives for businesses to assist employees with childcare costs. - Legislative advocacy: The commission asked the assembly to continue listing childcare as a high priority in its annual legislative priorities. - Ongoing strategic alignment: The recommendations were tied to the Sitka City and Borough (CBS) Strategic Plan Action Item 1.4, which commissioners said the proposed actions would support. - Work session request: The commission asked the assembly, relevant CBS staff and stakeholders to hold a work session in February to review the report and next steps.

Public comment at the meeting reinforced the commission’s urgency. Joel Marcus, board president of the Betty Eliason Child Care Center, described operating challenges and urged assembly support: "The thing that childcare centers in this community need is financial support," Marcus said, adding that his center is licensed for 99 children but is operating with less than half that enrollment and faces about $10,000 a month in fixed operating costs for utilities, insurance and maintenance. Retired teacher Margaret Galenan told the assembly she has students enrolled in early-career pathways tied to local childcare and praised recent progress in training local workforce for early childhood roles.

Commissioners and staff emphasized community partnerships. The commission’s report credits local organizations that contributed information and review, including Sitka’s Early Childhood Coalition, Sitka Tribe of Alaska, the Betty Eliason Child Care Center, Sitka Counseling, THRED Alaska and the Sitka Chamber of Commerce. Commissioners said they consulted examples from other Alaskan cities and boroughs to inform locally adaptable strategies.

What the assembly did: The presentation concluded with an invitation for questions; commissioners signaled willingness to appear at a work session to walk the assembly through the roughly 20-page report and its prioritized recommendations. The assembly did not take any formal action or adopt new policy or funding at the Jan. 28 meeting; commissioners requested the February work session to further develop municipal responses.

Context and caveats: Commissioners noted that while state and federal efforts have addressed childcare in recent years, local program business models remain stressed and short-term grants are not a sustainable long-term solution. The report lists the commission’s seven priority recommendations in order of perceived impact; the assembly will determine next steps, including whether to pursue the suggested municipal revenue sources, property assessments for childcare facilities, or legislative advocacy.