NYC Gazette

New York, NY – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) requested $1,713,000 in the Fiscal Year 2024 budget to re-open Hamilton-Madison House’s Childcare and Family Support Center at NYCHA Smith Houses, which has been closed due to the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The necessary renovations would include a wall replacement, floor and ceiling repair, painting, and HVAC and electrical upgrades.

“The Hamilton-Madison House serves over 5,000 members citywide and re-opening the Childcare and Family Support Center would allow them to meet the growing needs of our community,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “As a member of the Dads Caucus, I applaud them for working to provide our children and our families with the necessary services they need to succeed. It is time for us to bring back this historic and invaluable institution.”

Hamilton-Madison House Executive Director Isabel Ching said, “Thank you very much, Congressman Dan Goldman, for nominating Hamilton-Madison House's Childcare & Family Support Center, located at 10 Catherine Slip in the NYCHA Alfred E. Smith Houses, for Community Project Funding. This early childhood educational center has been closed since 2012, following 4-foot-high flood damage from Hurricane Sandy. This generous federal grant will fund the renovation of the premises, making it once again into a lively, engaging and educational space for our community's children. As with all our early childhood education programs, we will provide low- or no-cost childcare for eligible households, representing a significant cost savings for the working families of our community. Children will receive high-quality instruction, socialization, and nutritious food throughout the day, while parents will receive supportive social services such as parenting classes and family enrichment activities.”

The re-opened childcare center will be able to provide childcare and support services to over 100 low- and moderate-income families in the area. Children will receive high-quality instruction, socialization, and nutritious food throughout the day, while parents will receive supportive social services such as parenting classes and family enrichment activities. With the support of additional grant funding from the Department of Education, Hamilton-Madison Houses plans to offer these services to the community free of charge once the renovations are complete.

High-quality childcare is essential in allowing parents and other caretakers to pursue employment and other opportunities, which in turn increases economic mobility. In 2020, median household income for the Smith Houses community, in which the center would be located, was $17,500 per year, with a poverty rate of 41.52 percent and housing cost burden of 49.67 percent. Re-opening the center would have numerous beneficial impacts on the community.

Upon completion of renovation, Hamilton-Madison House will also hire 16 staff members to staff the childcare classrooms and will train 25 family childcare providers in how to provide a safe and educational setting in their homes, creating childcare job opportunities. Once the center is open, funding for these staff members will come from Hamilton-Madison House’s operating budget.

Hamilton-Madison House has been serving the residents of Lower Manhattan since 1898. Hamilton-MadisonHouse’s staff has grown to include a team of 300 who speak 15 languages, including six Chinese dialects. Alongside the childcare and parent support services, Hamilton-Madison House offers behavioral health services, early childhood education, senior services and youth development. 

Original source can be found here.