OJAI : School Officials Resurrect Plan for Child-Care Center

After shelving a proposed child-care center because of fiscal uncertainties, Ojai Unified School District officials have asked a committee to finish work on the project.

The project, delayed in the spring when officials were uncertain how much would be set aside in the state budget for redevelopment agencies, was resurrected at Tuesday’s board meeting.

The committee, composed of school board members Muriel Lavender and Tom Niehaus and City Council members Robert McKinney and Joe DeVito, will report back to the board by nextmonth with more specifics on the center’s operations, Supt. Andrew C. Smidt said.

The committee will decide where the classrooms will be located, how children will be transported to the center, who will assess the program’s quality and who will set tuition rates, Smidt said.

Under the proposal, Smart Start Inc., a private, nonprofit child-care provider, would run the center on school district land, using start-up funds provided by the city’s Redevelopment Agency.

City redevelopment officials have budgeted $75,000 for project costs such as installing a sewer line and landscaping, fences, sidewalks and equipping one or two portable classrooms with utilities near the district offices.

Smart Start proposes to initially accept about 60 children of all income levels, with scholarships available for some who cannot afford tuition, business manager Bill Huffman said.

The program will grow according to demand, he said, adding, “I think that it’s something that is badly needed.”

The number of scholarships will depend on community support and whether Smart Start receives requested grants, Director Dana Huffman said.

The program is expected to start 60 to 90 days after all parties sign the agreement.