SPECIAL FAIRFAX TOWN COUNCIL MEETING
STAFF REPORT
SPECIAL AGENDA ITEM #2
MEETING DATE March 6, 2024
PREPARED FOR Mayor and Town Council
PREPARED BY Heather Abrams, Town Manager
SUBJECT Authorize the Mayor to Send a Letter to Federal Representatives Supporting the County of Marin’s $2,500,000 Congressionally Directed Spending Request for the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the Mayor to send a letter to Federal Representatives supporting the County of Marin’s $2,500,000 Congressionally Directed Spending Request for the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center.
DISCUSSION
On March 4, 2024, Council Member Chance Cutrano requested that the Town send a letter to Federal Representatives supporting the County of Marin’s $2,500,000 Congressionally Directed Spending Request for the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center. If authorized by the full Council, a letter will be sent with the Mayor’s signature. Attached are: a) Marin County’s one-page fact sheet to accompany the request for funds to federal representatives, b) the draft letter to be sent.
On February 7, 2024, the Council pledged a donation of $25,000 to the Fairfax-Anselmo Children’s Center (FXSACC) solely for the purpose of purchasing the property at 199 Porteous Avenue, Fairfax, from the Ross Valley School District so they may continue to operate the FXSACC at the location, and the Council adopted a Resolution making findings appropriate to the agenda item.
FISCAL IMPACT
Postage costs and staff time needed to send the requested letter.
ATTACHMENT
A. Marin County’s one-page fact sheet to accompany the request for funds B. Draft Letter to Federal Representatives
Updated 3-4-2024
Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center
$2 . 5 M C O N G R E S SI O N A L L Y D I R EC T E D S P E N DI N G R EQ U E S T F O R C E NT E R W HI C H S ER V E S 11 0 LO W- I NC O M E C HI LD C A R E S LO T S County of Marin
3501 Civic Center Drive
San Rafael, CA 94903
415 473 6358 T
www.marincounty.gov
Katie Rice
C O U N T Y S U P E R V I S O R ,
D I S T R I C T 2
Stephanie Hellman
P R O J E C T C O N S U L T A N T
Heidi Tomsky
D I R E C T O R , F A I R F A X - S A N
A N S E L M O C H I L D R E N ’S C E N T E R
Federal funding request
contact:
Talia Smith,
Principal Analyst
[email protected]
Serving Marin’s low-income
families for more than 50 years
Since 1973, the Fairfax San Anselmo
Children’s Center has been one of few
subsidized childcare centers in Marin,
currently serving 110, or 12% of the
County’s total subsidized childcare slots.
To qualify for a subsidized childcare slot, a
family of 4 must earn less than $96,300;
47% lower than the countywide median of
$142,019. More than 75% of those served
by the Center are children of color.
Subsidized slots critically enable lowerincome families to afford to stay in Marin and in the workforce, whereas otherwise,
childcare for them would be unaffordable.
Community effort to save Center
Last year, the future of the Center was in
peril. The Center leases the property from
the Ross Valley School District (RVSD).
Without funding for needed repairs, RVSD
issued a termination to the lease and in
early 2024 voted to evict the Center. Marin
cannot afford to lose the Center and its
110 subsidized childcare slots, when more
than 800 eligible, low-income children
are currently on the countywide waitlist.
After a long period of exploring alternative
sites and options, a group of community
members convened to develop a creative
funding and sale proposal. To prevent
closure, the RVSD and the Center agreed to
a path forward which includes selling the
property to an intermediary nonprofit, which
will then lease the facility to the Center to
allow it to continue its operations. The
County, Marin Community Foundation, Town
of Fairfax and other benefactors raised more
than $2M for the property purchase.
Facility renovations needed
There is a commitment that, after the
property transfer, the facility and campus
renovations will commence. The childcare
facility needs major renovations to address
deferred maintenance and ensure future
seismic and fire safety for long-term
sustainability.
The 50-year old facility needs major renovations.
From October 2023 to January 2024 the
Center had more than 15 site visits by
architects, engineers and construction
experts to design a renovations plan to
modernize the facility. This plan allows
continuous childcare operations without
relocating or use of temporary buildings;
renovations will prioritize safety and
accessibility work in two phases:
Phase 1 (2024-25): redesign of the
parking lot, fire access, ADA upgrades,
bathrooms and lower wing ($3M)
Phase 2 (2025-26): Upper wing and
multi-purpose room, including roof,
bathrooms, HVAC, abatement,
electrical and lighting ($3-5M)
$2.5M Federal funds requested
The project has broad local support, and
to date, funding contributed to it has all
been local dollars from the County, cities,
Community Foundation, and private
donations. However, there is a significant
funding gap for the needed renovations.
$2.5M of federal funding is respectfully
requested to support Phase 2:
$2,0M Acquisition (underway) Local
$3,0 Phase 1 renovations Local
$1,0 Phase 2 renovations Local
$2,5 Phase 2 renovations Federal
$8,5M TOTAL
ATTACHMENT A
ATTACHMENT B
[put on agency’s letterhead]
March 6, 2023
[please sign 3 letters: one for each CA member of Congress listed below. Remove highlighted text as needed]
The Honorable Senator Laphonza Butler
United States Senate
112 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Senator Alex Padilla
United States Senate
331 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Congressman Jared Huffman
United States House of Representatives
1527 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Subject: Letter of Support for the County of Marin’s $2,500,000 Congressionally Directed Spending Request for the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center, a low-income-serving childcare center Dear Senator Feinstein Senator Padilla Congressmember Huffman, On behalf of the Town of Fairfax California, I would like to express our support for the County of Marin’s project request of $2.5 million for much-needed capital improvements for the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center, which provides subsidized childcare to more than 110 low-income children in Marin.
On February 7, 2024, the Fairfax Town Council pledged a donation of $25,000 to the Fairfax-Anselmo Children’s Center (FXSACC) solely for the purpose of purchasing the property at 199 Porteous Avenue, Fairfax, from the Ross Valley School District so they may continue to operate the FXSACC at the location, and the Council adopted a Resolution making findings appropriate to the agenda item.
We know how expensive the cost of living in the Bay Area is; especially in Marin County. This is why safety-net, public assistance programs are essential to ensure that those in Marin’s service economy, education, nonprofits and other low-wage jobs are able to live in the communities they serve.
State-subsidized childcare slots for low-income families are a critical safety net. Marin County has the second highest cost of childcare in the state; $2,600/month for infant care and $2,315 for preschool. A state-subsidized childcare slot therefore provides essential support for parents who may otherwise not be
ATTACHMENT B
able to afford childcare; enabling them to continue employment, education, or pursue other opportunities while ensuring their children receive high-quality care and early childhood education. To qualify for a subsidized childcare slot, a family of four must earn less than $96,300; which is 47% lower than the Marin countywide household median income of $142,019.
The Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center (FSACC) is the oldest standing state-subsidized childcare center in Marin County (operating since 1973), providing 110 children from 90 low-income families with year-round childcare. More than 3 in 4 of the children served by the Children’s Center are children of color, compared with just 20% of residents countywide.
Children served by the FSACC come from the Ross Valley and other parts of central Marin; including the working-class Canal neighborhood in San Rafael. More than 90% of Canal residents are Hispanic – compared with 66% of all Marin residents who identify as White. The average household income in the Canal is roughly a third of the rest of the County.
Last year, the future of the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center was in peril. The Center, which does not own its property, but leases it from the Ross Valley School District – faced possible closure when the school district moved to terminate the Center’s lease. The property needs major renovations to address deferred maintenance, ensure future seismic and fire safety for long-term sustainability. Without an identified funding source for needed facility renovations, the School District voted to evict the Center from the property.
The community rallied around the Center, and to prevent closure and the loss of its 110 subsidized childcare slots, a deal was agreed to have the school district sell the property to an intermediary nonprofit, which will then lease it to the FSACC, to ensure its continued operation as a subsidized childcare center.
The project has broad local support, and the County of Marin, Marin Community Foundation, and the Town of Fairfax have contributed significant funding towards the purchase of the property and immediate repairs needed (Phase 1). However, funding is needed for Phase 2 renovations which include seismic retrofitting, HVAC, abatement and other upgrades which will ensure the Center can continue to serve thousands of children in Marin for years to come. Marin cannot afford to lose the Fairfax-San Anselmo Children’s Center, and the 110 subsidized slots it provides (12% of the 950 total slots in Marin).
Especially when more than 900 eligible, low-income children in Marin remain on the waiting list for a subsidized slot.
We support this project and the $2.5 million in federal funds requested that would fill the Center’s critical funding gap for the second phase of needed renovations. I urge your full and fair consideration of the importance of this funding request. Please contact Town Manager Heather Abrams at [email protected] if you need more information.
Sincerely,
Mayor Barbara Coler