Dear Editor,
Is there a need for more daycares in Dodgeville? If Dodgeville School District (DSD) does offer or contracts with a ‘private’ daycare, money for this is an additional levy to taxpayers for this community Fund 80 project. No state aid monies. Essentially what was a private pay daycare becomes a taxpayer funded daycare. Pros, cons, questions. A community benefits if indeed there is a need for more daycares, and of course higher pay and benefits. The school district benefits IF the kids eventually enroll in our schools, hence more student FTEs and more state aid. Staff benefit by easy access to daycare. Hopefully if there is an attendance cap, the attendance numbers are fairly equal school staff children and community members children, otherwise it’s not really a ‘Community’ DayCare. All expenses (lightning, custodial, playground, toys, salaries, insurance, retirement, paid time off, snacks, all equipment, etc) are funded by all of us every year under a Fund 80 levy. Sauk Prairie, which may be unique due to a new daycare building outside of the school buildings, used grants and start up funds from businesses. That school district projects a $2.3 million cost per year, aims to break even rather than make a profit. Dodgeville is fortunate to have a Fund 80 from taxpayers, but with their Fund 80 monies dwindling due to other projects/expenses (Community Service Director proposal, Auditorium Coordinator? Other) that means more local, ongoing taxation, plus the referendum, plus previous recurring $1.3 million referendum levy, plus the Governors $325 levy every yr per student, which increases yearly. Mill rate is not a true actual cost to taxpayers..Is this indeed a Need or a Want?
Nancy Mueller Dodgeville, WI