Address Zoning to Expand Care Options

Zoning audits can be used to identify and address barriers to the expansion of early learning and care opportunities in local communities. Consider how a zoning audit could support your municipality in becoming a child care ready community. A robust child care system, which meets the needs of all families requiring child care services, is an economic development issue and critical to a community’s quality of life. A child care ready community is:

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• Informed of the need for child care facilities. Organized to address identified shortfalls.

• Connected to people and organizations that provide support.

• Supportive of the unique needs of vulnerable groups.

• The community understands that it is only child care ready if everyone in the community has access to good, affordable child care close to home and work. 

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Pulse, in partnership with McKenna and funded by the Early Childhood Investment Corporation, provided zoning technical services to communities across Southwest Michigan. These services helped identify zoning barriers to child care business development and offered recommendations for removing obstacles and incentivizing growth. The project, which ran from July 16 to August 31, 2024, included outreach efforts and zoning audits that revealed common barriers and solutions for fostering child care readiness. Initially focused on Southwest Michigan, the project expanded to include additional communities due to high demand.