Chapter 2: Identifying a Site for the Facility

1. Determining a Location
2. Land Ownership

I. Determining a Location

Selecting the location for a child care facility is crucial to the success of the program. The site should be convenient for parents, safe for children, and close to other community programs and services. The first step in identifying a child care site should be to carefully review the information gathered through the community assessment to determine:

• How many children (by age) potentially need child care?
• Where do the families live?
• Where do the parents work and/or attend school?
• Where do 6- to 12-year-old children attend school?

When determining the convenience of a location, the lead agency should consider:

• Transportation routes for public and/or tribal transit systems, Head Start and elementary school buses, etc.;
• Routes parents most often use to travel to work, school, the grocery store, etc.;
• Distance from elementary schools, Head Start, and other part-day programs for children;
• Distance from food service, if meals will not be prepared on site; and
• Distance from health and emergency services.

Some sites should be avoided since they may pose health or safety risks to children. For example, the lead agency should avoid choosing:

• Property adjacent to a major highway, near a landfill or dump, or near a business that may produce toxic fumes or pose other health threats to children;
• Isolated property that is not easily accessible for parents, staff, or emergency vehicles;
• Property that lacks a safe water supply; and
• Property in a floodplain, or one that tends to have pools of standing water.

There are also financial factors to consider such as:

• The cost of bringing utilities (water, electric, gas/propane, sewer, telephone) onto the property, including soil, water, and other environmental tests.
• The cost of preparing the site for construction, such as removing old buildings, leveling the ground, upgrading roads leading to the site, and grading and surfacing driveways and parking lots.

II. Land Ownership

Once a general location has been identified, the next step is to determine who owns the specific property and whether the owner is willing to sell, lease, or donate the property for a tribal child care center.

If the land is located within the boundaries of a reservation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Realty Office should be able to identify the land owner or verify that the land is tribal trust property. Permission to use tribal trust property is generally granted by the Tribal Government with approval from BIA. Some individual property owners will be able to negotiate the use of their property while others may need the approval of the BIA and/or Tribal Government. This process will vary from Tribe to Tribe. The BIA Realty Office or the Tribal Government can provide the specific tribal procedures that should be followed for gaining permission to construct on reservation lands.

To identify the owner of off-reservation property, a records search can be conducted at the county courthouse.

Other entities that may own property suitable for a child care center include school districts; churches; and city, county, or state governments. They may be willing to donate or lease property for such a project, especially if the larger community will benefit. Businesses will sometimes donate property for a tax break or to promote good will in the community.

Before using funds for the purchase or lease of land, contact the funding source to determine if such use is allowable. The Tribe may want to consider long-term land lease agreements for modular structures but not for permanent construction. Any contract for the purchase, lease, or donation of land should be between the Tribal Government and the current land owner. Agreements should be in writing and reviewed by a lawyer.

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