A Cochrane woman’s decision to relocate her day home business within the town received approval from town administration but an eleventh hour submission during the appeal process has left parents scrambling to secure alternative childcare..

“I was running a day home back in GlenEagles and my fiancé and I were looking into relocating,” said Claire Daoud. “We checked out the different areas here in Cochrane, because we adore the town of Cochrane, and we found a place in Riversong that was meeting our needs.”

The owner of the Riversong home agreed to allow Daoud to operate a day home for up to six children in the residence and Daoud submitted an application to the Town of Cochrane.

“Everything had been approved according to (the town’s) expectations,” said Daoud. “There’s a process of appeal period for 21 days which we needed to wait out.”

On the final afternoon of the appeal period, town administration confirmed to Daoud that an appeal had been submitted and she would not be able to operate her day home pending the results of a hearing.

“I went to see the (Town of Cochrane) to find out what the appeal was based on because there will be a hearing based on that. I found out it was a concern about traffic and noise.” Daoud says she was stunned to learn of the concern and says her home has a parking pad that can accommodate more than three vehicles at a time.

Susan Flowers, Cochrane’s Deputy Mayor, expresses her sympathy for Daoud and the parents affected by the appeal but says the town’s land use bylaw, as it currently stands, allows citizens an opportunity to voice their concerns.

“It needs to be advertised so neighbours have a chance to weigh-in and it did turn out that one of the neighbours did appeal the process,” said Flowers. “The appeal process takes some time and in the midterm she can’t be running her day home.”

“It’s an unfortunate circumstance and I totally see the stress that it’s causing these people in their lives.”

The appeal period was extended following the initial submission and the hearing is currently scheduled to take place on June 21.

In the meantime, Daoud is without the income she makes from her day home and the families who had made arrangements with Daoud are in need of alternative childcare.

“I had to let the parents know on the afternoon of May 31 that they no longer had care with me,” said Daoud. “The children had to be dispersed. Some families could not find immediate care.”

Maureen Topp of Play Days Family Day Home Agency, an organization that screens, supports and offers referrals to day home operators including Daoud, says there is strong demand for childcare in Cochrane.

“In the town of Cochrane right now, there is an extreme shortage of day home spaces for families within our agency,” said Topp. “We are currently unable to meet the needs of our community. We have an extremely long waitlist particularly for under the age of three.”

Topp says, at present, there are upwards of 50 families on the waitlist for spots in one of the agency’s 35 day homes in the area. There are several proposed day homes that are currently in the application process.

Cochrane’s current land use bylaw differs from the regulations in place in Calgary and Okotoks where a day home operator who cares for fewer than seven children would not be subject to a permitting process.

Deputy Mayor Flowers says the Town of Cochrane is currently reviewing its land use bylaw. “It’s open to the public for engagement and we are looking at making changes. The timing is really good for us. We need to learn what’s working and what’s not working. We haven’t looked at the bylaw since 2004 so it’s time.”

“We need to make sure that the rules are clear and that there are not barriers in place for people who are providing a valuable service such as day homes,” said Flowers. “Child care is needed and there’s people whose livelihood depends on it.”

Flowers encourages Cochrane residents to attend future sessions regarding the land use bylaw to voice their concerns or to submit their concerns to the Town of Cochrane in writing.

With files from CTV's Brad MacLeod