One of Clatsop County’s largest child care providers is looking to expand.
On Monday, Angie Jannusch, co-owner of the Astoria-based day care Bumble, told Astoria city councilors the business has applied for a grant through Business Oregon that, if successful, would allow Bumble to purchase a house near its location to use for infant care.
The expansion would open an additional 25 toddler spots at the day care’s current building, the Old Yacht Club at the base of Astoria’s South Slope.
Bumble has requested $750,000 from Business Oregon for the purchase price of the home and minor renovations. If Bumble does not get the grant, Jannusch said, it will look to the community to help fund the program.
“It is a crisis for the infrastructure of our community currently,” she said, “We don’t have enough child care.”
In 2023, Clatsop County finally shook off its label as a child care “desert” for preschool-age children.
But major gaps still remain — especially for infant care — and child care remains a pressing issue, cited along with a lack of housing as one of the major barriers for people looking to live and work in the county and the employers who want to hire them.
With recent closures of other centers, including Peace First Early Learning Center in Astoria last summer, Bumble is the only facility in Clatsop County that provides infant care at a day care center scale.
Bumble offers care for children from infancy through preschool. The day care is currently at capacity with more than 70 children enrolled and a substantial wait list.
On Monday, Jannusch and co-owner Amy Atkinson asked for an extension on their lease of the city-owned Old Yacht Club Building to be able to show greater stability as Bumble seeks out grant funding for various aspects of their operations. Bumble’s lease on the building was set to expire in 2027.
Jannusch told KMUN that granting entities want assurances that Bumble is around for the long-haul and extending the lease with the city now was one way to do that.
Astoria city councilors unanimously approved an extension to 2030 with an option to renew for an additional five years.
Lack of child care is a major barrier for people who work, said City Councilor Vance Lump ahead of the discussion.
“Anything the city can do to help keep Bumble successful, I’m hugely in support of,” he said.
Mayor Sean Fitzpatrick also voiced his support, crediting Bumble for increasing Astoria’s child care capacity.
In 2022, Bumble partnered with the city’s Parks and Recreation Department and took over the city-operated Sprouts Learning Center. The city estimated it was losing around $17,000 a month trying to operate the day care and also struggled with staffing shortages.
The day care has grown under Bumble and now employs 24 people.