Long Beach : Day-Care Center to Close After $72,000 Funding Loss
One of the city’s oldest day-care centers plans to close its doors Friday, mainly due to a decrease in funding from the United Way.
The Long Beach Day Nursery at 495 E. Plymouth St. was awarded $72,000 less by United Way--a 40% decrease from its allocation last year, said Mary Soth, executive director of the facility that has served children of working parents for 61 years.
Soth said she hopes the closure is temporary. The nursery’s branches in the central and eastern parts of Long Beach will continue to operate and will care for many of the 45 children from the nursery that is closing.
Some employees will also transfer to the two branches, but 10 workers are scheduled to be laid off, Soth said.
“There’s no way we can absorb or make up a $72,000 loss,” said Soth, noting that the child-care centers she oversees are private, nonprofit organizations that rely heavily on donations.
The North Long Beach nursery also saw a decrease in enrollment this year because many parents have lost their jobs, Soth said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
