Screen Photo Doug Diedrichsen, principal planner with the City Planning Department ,explains his interpretation of existing regulations around home-operated day cares.

A reinterpretation of existing ordinances by the City could open the door for commercial day care operators to expand their businesses into residential homes.

Doug Diedrichsen, principal planner with the planning department, provided an update to the Committee on Childcare in Minot meeting on Thursday, April 30, regarding owner occupied home business policy. Diedrichsen explained originally the plan was to find a way to allow commercial daycares to operate out of residential properties.

However, Diedrichsen said after discussions with the building safety department, it was determined having commercial daycares operate out of residential homes would result in thousands of dollars in required updates for safety features such as sprinkler systems.

“Who is going to buy a house with a sprinkler system that has $5,000 a year maintenance costs?” Diedrichsen said.

Diedrichsen said instead a policy shift was in order around how a home-based business and owner-occupied are interpreted. Diedrichsen explained that the door is open to commercial daycare operators operating out of a residential home so long as it is owned and licensed as an in-home daycare.

“If you own a home, and you own a second home, and you’re operating a business out of the home you don’t necessarily sleep at, it’s still your home. You are still an owner and you still occupy that building, like you occupy a cabin at the lake,” Diedrichsen said. “This would apply to all owner occupied businesses going forward though.”

Diedrichsen said the central issue in play was policing and enforcing the ordinance if it requires the owner to operate out of the home they actually live in. Instead, commercial operators would have to meet all the same requirements of a home-based owner occupied daycare license, limiting the staff to two and with up to 18 children in the daycare.

“We are willing to have a discussion about operating commercial daycares out of residential homes, but what it came down to was that it’d be cheaper to rent out a commercial space than to remodel a single family home to meet the building code requirements to operate a business of that type out of it,” Diedrichsen said. “This is a policy shift. We don’t need to bring this to the city council or the planning commission. This is just the way we interpret it.”

Committee member Amy Jenkins sought some clarification on whether there were any limitations on a home day-care operated out of secondary residence, but Diedrichsen assured her the requirements would be the same as any other in-home daycare whether a commercial operator was running it, and was effective immediately. He stressed all of the same ordinances and rules that apply to home-based businesses still applied.

“I have to say that’s pretty exciting. I know for a little while I know that was something that was hard to swallow for licensing. But that’s an exciting interpretation for us to hear about,” Jenkins said. “I think it would be pretty huge. I have one provider focused on home environments and really wants to increase, and she’s always asked me about that. I feel like we’ll probably see a few add-ons of that nature pretty quick. She’s been looking for a commercial building but they’ve been priced too high for what she can afford. She feels like this might be an avenue, so I’m actually pretty excited to tell her.”

The committee also revisited the issue of safety concerns at day care facilities raised at a previous meeting, with the caveat from chairwoman Lisa Olson that they would not be discussing the specific situation raised as the committee has no authority over the incident. Instead, Jenkins encouraged all individuals with concerns to contact a state hotline either by phone or email. The number is 1-800-997-8516 and email is dhsec@nd.gov.

Olson also announced that at the City Council’s May 4 meeting, a proclamation will be delivered by Mayor Mark Jantzer declaring Childcare Appreciation Week, and encouraged providers in the area to attend and be recognized.

Olson concluded the meeting acknowledging this meeting was her last on the committee as she made the decision not to seek re-election to City Council, and asked the committee for feedback on the committee’s progress to be reported to the City Council and if it had achieved its goals.

The general sentiment from the committee members was that while some progress has been made and goals achieved, but that there was more that could be done.

“I would agree that we’re able to get things going and put people in the right direction if we need to. Because we exist people have a place to go, so I think it’s something that is needed on a consistent basis for our community,” Jenkins said.

Olson said that a white-paper would be generated to support the recommendation to the mayor and City Council.