Dear Nederland Residents,

On February 20, 2024, the Town Board of Trustees (BOT) passed Ordinance 859, granting special review use (SRU) for a private childcare center at 750 W. 5th Street proposed by TEENS, Inc. We understand that people opposed to this childcare center have organized a referendum petition to stop this project from moving forward. If they get 67 signatures from Nederland residents, the issue will return to the BOT and the project will be significantly delayed.

The purpose of this letter to the Nederland Community is to clear up two potential misperceptions and invite people to reach out to me with questions or thoughts.

Misperception 1. TEENS, Inc. has other offers and should pursue these: TEENS, Inc. has no other options on the table. Two development groups have plans to build a childcare facility if their entire projects are approved. If these projects are approved, the community will likely need even more expanded care in addition to the currently proposed project. Collectively, I have spoken to four different groups / individuals and no one has presented an opportunity to address the immediate need.

Misperception 2. The potential lease is a giveaway to a company set to make millions: Early Childhood Education and Care that provides subsidized care and decent wages and benefits is not a viable business without grants, donations and / or government funding. In addition to numerous research and news articles, this is evident by looking at what other childcare centers receive from local government. For instance, six different centers in Boulder / Longmont receive between $22,500 and $72,000 annually from their municipality. Prior to its dissolution, Eagles Nest Early Learning Center in Gilpin received over $100k / year from multiple funding sources through the Gilpin County Commissioners. If ECE was truly profitable, over 50% of Colorado would not be considered a childcare desert. We are not, and will not, be asking for ongoing operational support from the Town of Nederland. Rather, we are asking for a one time contribution of land to lease.

With this information, you may wonder, “how can TEENS, Inc. sustain this Center?” The simple answer is that we have been sustaining programs that are free of cost to those that use them since 1997. We are able to do this thanks to a committed group of local supporters and experience securing government and foundation grants. We can take advantage of economies of scale resulting from operating a variety of programs for which we seek supplemental funding. Think of a childcare center in a YMCA where staff and fundraising efforts can work across programmatic areas. Being able to leverage this structure makes financial sustainability possible, compared to a stand alone preschool program.

Others have mentioned that this decision about whether or not to allow TEENS, Inc. to build a center on the Old Town Shop site should be included in the April election. The timing does not work for this to be on the April ballot, therefore a special election would need to take place. Any ballot initiative at this point will create a 12 - 24 month delay in this project moving forward. Additionally, the public has already been asked to weigh in on this question during the six public meetings relating to this project that have been held since last fall, with notice through Facebook messages and letters to the editor.

As mentioned, I welcome the opportunity to discuss this in greater detail with anyone. Please reach out to me if you have any questions, concerns, thoughts or ideas. I can be reached at stephen@teensinc.org.

Stephen LeFaiver

Executive Director

TEENS, Inc.