Photo courtesy of LICP
Dec. 2, 2024 By Laura Rothrock, President, Long Island City Partnership
In Long Island City, we’re proud to hold the title of New York City’s fastest-growing neighborhood.
We’re a true hub for residents, businesses, and workers alike. As the area continues to flourish, there’s no question that families are a central part of our community, and the demand for accessible, high-quality child care has never been higher. Yet, like many neighborhoods across the city, Long Island City faces its own “childcare desert.” This scarcity of childcare options isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s an obstacle to economic stability, workforce participation, and overall quality of life.
Better Child Care NYC, a coalition uniting business, labor, and nonprofit leaders, recognizes that the need for accessible child care is about more than just convenience for parents. It’s about ensuring that families can stay and grow in Long Island City without needing to leave for areas with more options.
The coalition’s initiatives represent a bold step toward making this a reality, and we are proud to lend our support to its mission.
Why is this an urgent need? The statistics paint a clear picture. New York City’s childcare infrastructure currently only has the capacity to serve 46% of children under five. The result is a scramble for limited slots, sky-high costs, and families pushed to reduce work hours or even consider moving to areas with better childcare access.
The stakes are high for our economy, too: a report by the city’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC) estimates that these childcare gaps cost the city around $23 billion in lost economic output in 2022 alone. This issue impacts Long Island City directly, with many local businesses expressing concern over employee retention and recruitment challenges that directly result from inadequate childcare options.
The coalition is pushing for specific policy changes to help open more childcare centers in areas like Long Island City and other parts of Queens, especially where high demand and rapid development make affordable childcare a critical need.
Among these proposals are the following: increasing the value of the NYC Child Care Property Tax Credit, lifting outdated zoning laws that restrict child care centers to ground-floor locations, and streamlining the cumbersome permitting processes that delay center openings. These may seem like small steps, but each one can significantly impact access to care.
Imagine a Long Island City where parents can access quality child care close to home or work, where businesses can retain top talent without worrying about the child care needs that might send employees elsewhere.
We want our neighborhood to be as welcoming to families as it is to business and tourism, and accessible child care is a crucial part of that vision. We are the state’s most mixed-use neighborhood and NYC’s geographic center, balancing residential, commercial, and industrial spaces – a unique quality that draws diverse industries and populations but requires the right infrastructure to support them.
Beyond that, improved childcare access is part of fostering a neighborhood that truly works for everyone. Families should not feel forced to leave Long Island City due to a lack of childcare or work flexibility. They should be able to count on their neighborhood to support their needs at every stage, and businesses should be able to thrive in a community that values families as part of its future.
The good news is that creating better childcare access doesn’t require a massive overhaul of the city budget. Many of these changes, like enhancing the tax credit or unifying inspection processes, can be made without substantial additional funding. But they do require cooperation and commitment from policymakers, who must make child care infrastructure a priority if we are to create a New York City that works for all.
Long Island City has come a long way in recent years, transforming into a vibrant, multifaceted community with a reputation for family-friendliness. To keep that reputation, to attract new families, and to support the ones already here, it’s time we tackled the childcare issue head-on. We encourage our city and state leaders to seize this moment, act on the Better Child Care NYC proposals, and help shape a future in which Long Island City remains a neighborhood where families can grow and thrive.
- * Laura Rothrock is the president of Long Island City Partnership (LICP) and executive director of the Long Island City Business Improvement District (LIC BID), which is managed by LICP.
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