Dear Editor,

I was raised in the Nederland community, my parents moved to the area in 1971 and I am a proud graduate of both Nederland Elementary and Nederland High School. In 2020 I had the incredible good fortune to return to my home community to be the principal of Nederland Elementary. My love for the area and community and my commitment to ensure the long-term viability of our vibrant community is, simply, my north star.

With this in mind I see no greater need for our town and community than the preschool and early childhood education center proposed by TEENS, Inc. Without affordable, available, and year round child care our beloved community will “age out” and lose its long-term thriving culture. Our community will, for lack of better words, wither away. Another way of looking at this is, the Nederland community desperately needs to attract young families, with young children to ensure the long-term viability of our town and the greater Peak to Peak region.

As the principal of Nederland Elementary School I hear almost daily regarding the need for sustainable and affordable early child care. This is a critical need in our community for at least two reasons. First, I hear regularly from employees or prospective employees that they need early child care for their children. This need has caused us to lose high quality employees. The second need is to stem the declining enrollment at Nederland Elementary School.

While affordable housing remains a challenge for young families, the more significant need is access to available and affordable year round childcare. Young parents or prospective parents are required to either find nannies (near impossible), have one caregiver stay home (also nearly impossible due to the lack of affordable housing) or move to the front range where there are more daycare options (the most likely option). This has a direct through line to the declining enrollment we see at Nederland Elementary School and to the long-term sustainability of our lively community.

Fortunately, TEENS, Inc. has a plan, funding, and an organizational commitment to addressing this most critical need. If you are a registered voter in the Town of Nederland please vote YES by July 30th during the special election to allow TEENS, Inc. to lease town owned land to build and operate a child care facility.

Thank you for your consideration.

Caleb Melamed

Nederland