NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Universal child care was one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani's promises on the affordability campaign that landed him in City Hall. Now, two months into his tenure, the mayor is announcing the first 2,000 seats of free 2-K child care opening in four New York City communities.
The program is coming to Washington Heights and Inwood in Manhattan; Kingsbridge and Fordham in the Bronx; Ozone Park and the Rockaways in Queens; and East Brooklyn, including Canarise, Ocean Hill and Brownsville. Mamdani said that the decision to first bring seats to these specific communities was made based on economic need, and existing infrastructure ready to handle a ramp-up in offerings.
"Now this is just the first step, because next year we're going to be delivering this to 12,000 students," Mamdani told 1010 WINS. "At the end of year four, every single 2-year-old in New York City."
The application process for these seats will roll out in early summer, and the mayor said the only requirement is to live in the proper neighborhoods, regardless of occupation, income or immigration status. If children are not yet 2, but turn 2 before the end of the year, they can still apply and be granted spots on a rolling basis.
"This will be using a combination of home-based providers, as well as center provisions, and we're seeing this in many ways as a continuation of what the city does with 3-K offerings, now extending it for the first time in history to 2-year-olds," Mamdani said.
As part of the preparation process, the administration issued a request for information from child care providers, including those who currently work with the city and those that don't. This allowed officials to gauge interest and capacity while focusing on the sustainability of the program.
"We want to build this as something that lasts, something that is durable, because we know that after the housing crisis, the cost of child care is what's pushing New Yorkers out of the city," the mayor said. "I said $20,000 is a good deal, there's some New Yorkers who are spending $30,000, $40,000 a year. This is what can make it so much easier to raise a family in this city, and that's why we're taking it so seriously and treating it so urgently."