Draft deal would renovate Haines' preschool building and give it to the tribe

A draft agreement in Haines Borough records would spend a $1 million federal grant to renovate the borough's preschool building and then give it to the Chilkoot Indian Association. The Assembly hasn't voted on it, and two other groups want the same space.

Haines has about 25 childcare slots, then-Mayor Tom Morphet told the Assembly, about half the roughly 45 he estimated for the 1980s and 1990s.

What the draft would do

Under the two-year draft, the borough would improve the building so it can hold more children and offer preschool and infant care, then transfer ownership to the tribe. Until then, the borough would pay for the work, and the tribe would carry no costs or responsibility for the building.

Borough records don't show whether the preschool's lease, which runs through 2047, allows a transfer, or whether the grant requires the building to stay in childcare use or be repaid if it changes hands.

Who wants the building

The preschool. Chilkat Valley Preschool closed its program in August for low enrollment and reopened Oct. 10 as a member-run co-op for families with children up to age 5. Twelve families with 20 children have committed, Jessie Wuesthoff wrote for the preschool board. The preschool says its lease runs through 2047.

The Senior Center. The Haines Senior Center, which the building is attached to, wants it for senior and community programs. Its Oct. 9 proposal says the space "has remained vacant more often than it has been open."

The tribe. Harriet Brouillette, tribal administrator for the Chilkoot Indian Association, told the Assembly Oct. 27 that the tribe has worked for five years on a plan for a preschool and childcare center and will provide care "either... in collaboration with the Borough, or... on our own." She said the tribe has a separate $1 million U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grant to renovate a building across from the high school, and that Tlingit & Haida is covering planning and equipment. Care would cost about $2,700 per child per month, she said, and families would not pay it in full.

Why childcare is short

A childcare working group's Sept. 13 notes found Head Start full with a waitlist. Kids R Fun, the only licensed private childcare provider in Haines, had all eight slots filled and 12 children waiting. The notes cite an "urgent need for infant and toddler care," say care costs more to provide than parents can pay, and conclude that "the business model for childcare is broken." They also say the tribe is two years from opening a center.

Where the $1 million came from

In a January report, Morphet said the borough had asked U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski for $1 million for childcare training and a site. "We got a million dollars," he told the Assembly Oct. 13. He favored putting the grant into the building and working with the tribe.

Kim Larson, who runs Kids R Fun, wrote that the grant can pay only for facilities, not for running a program.

What the Assembly has done

On Oct. 13, the Assembly voted unanimously to have its Government Affairs and Services Committee organize an ad hoc childcare group.

Members split 3-3 on Eben Sargent's motion to explore childcare service contracts paid from a borough fund, and Morphet broke the tie in favor. Sargent said he sees childcare as economic development. Member Mark Smith called the motion "putting the cart in front of the horse."

Later that night, Sargent moved to have the borough manager bring back a list of options for the building grant. That failed 3-3, with Morphet breaking the tie against it.

What's next

The committee meets Nov. 4 at 5:30 pm to discuss organizing the ad hoc childcare group. The full Assembly next meets Nov. 18.