Parents rally to save Brooklyn child care centers from shutdowns
NEW YORK -- A group of parents in New York City is outraged after the city announced it will close multiple child care centers.
Four early child care centers in Brooklyn and one in Queens are slated to shut down after the city said less than two weeks ago it will not renew leases there.
50-year-old school in Brooklyn slated to close
On Friday, parents gathered outside Nuestros Niños Day Care Center in Williamsburg, Brooklyn after learning the 51-year-old school is among those slated to close.
"I would not be able to pay for child care if it wasn't for this place," one of the rallying parents said.
Maria Figueroa, a retired teacher, taught at Nuestros Niños for 15 years. She said Latinos make up a large part of the student population.
"They came here with Spanish and they left here with English and Spanish," Figueroa said.
Parents and borough leaders say the schools are vital resource centers for their neighborhoods. They claim Mayor Eric Adams is more concerned about money than their children.
"If this site closes, that sends the strongest message I think I've ever heard, I was born and raised here, which is your mayor does not care about your family and does not care about your children," said New York City Council Member Jennifer Gutierrez.
NYC blames budget cuts and low enrollment
The reasons for closing the centers include low enrollment and budget cuts, according to the NYC Department of Education.
In a statement, the city said it uses "data to determine where to open and close seats so that we can reallocated taxpayer dollars to neighborhoods with the greatest need."
Robert Cordero is director of Grand Street Settlement, another school on the chopping block. He said enrollment is at 98%.
"Let's be clear. This is not about enrollment. This is about real estate," Cordero said. "I could see condominiums."
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso agrees with Cordero's assertion.
"The perfect example of how government fails people and how administrations care more about numbers than people," Reynoso said.
School officials said the announcement about the closings came less than 24 hours before applications for the upcoming school year went live.
