June 10, 2000

Day Care for Young, Old Not Easy to Set Up

If you're thinking of starting an intergenerational day-care center, you need to realize at least two things: Obtaining the necessary state licenses will take time, and you're not going to get rich.

This advice comes from Cheryl Wilson, chief executive officer at St. Paul's Senior Homes & Services.

She says it took one year to get the center's permits from the city.

"The problem was that intergenerational day care doesn't fit anyone's book. When we applied, the city didn't have a clue what intergenerational was."

Getting the permits, Wilson says, was an educational process. Eventually, the city decided to give the group two conditional-use permits, one for adult day care and one for children's.

Wilson hopes St. Paul's has helped pave the way so that other organizations might find it a little easier to set up a similar program.

Among the day-care requirements, Wilson lists:

Licenses from the California Department of Social Services- Community Care Licensing;

At least 70 square feet of playground space for each child;

At least 35 square feet of usable indoor space for each child, not including space occupied by furniture that is bolted down;

Age-appropriate toys and furniture;

Toys and equipment that meet state safety regulations; no equipment that moves or bounces;

A teacher who's always present;

For the adults, a safe and clean environment; and someone to keep an eye on them at all times.

The state also wants to make sure the children won't be mowed down by the adults, Wilson says.

Though she champions adult day care, she cautions the over-eager, "You will never make any money."

St. Paul's program might be invaluable to its participants and their families, but financially it's a bust. At capacity, Wilson says, the most the center can anticipate is breaking even. Fortunately, she points out, St. Paul's Senior Homes & Services is a nonprofit organization.

"And intergenerational day care is a real ministry."