Aspen assessment questions envisioned Burlingame Ranch childcare center

Kids First, a city of Aspen early childhood resource center, has released a community needs assessment report detailing current conditions and emerging trends in childcare across Pitkin County and the Roaring Fork Valley, with a particular focus on Burlingame Ranch.

According to a press release, the assessment looked at both current and projected childcare needs in order to identify areas of strength and gaps in meeting the needs of families throughout the region. While this report aims to provide a “full picture” of childcare needs for families in Pitkin County, the report highlights that Kids First and Aspen are most interested in evaluating the need for the childcare center at Burlingame Ranch. 

“As demand changes, we need adaptable, sustainable solutions,” said Megan Monaghan, Kids First co-manager, in the release. “This report helps us plan for the future and ensure that the addition of new facilities will support our long-term early childhood education goals.”

Key findings from the assessment

According to the report, more than eight in 10 families in the Roaring Fork Valley reported that they use some form of non-parental childcare during a typical week.

Enrollment patterns are continuing to fluctuate. Spring and summer 2025 data showed a shortage of infant and toddler care and sufficient preschool capacity, but more recent data showed available spaces across all age groups, “underscoring rapidly changing demand” and shifting needs.

Families cited affordability, flexible hours, and accessible locations as primary barriers to securing care, the release states, and commuting families from Garfield and Eagle counties have added childcare pressure, particularly infant and toddler care, on Pitkin County providers.

But “adding preschool slots at a not-yet-built facility at Burlingame Ranch without targeted support could financially strain existing providers already experiencing enrollment challenges.”

The report also highlights that future childcare facilities should be “adaptable and easily reconfigured” as age group needs shift over time. And, pairing childcare centers with on-site staff housing could potentially lower operational costs, improve workforce retention, and strengthen long-term service stability.

Burlingame Early Childhood Education Center

The Burlingame Early Childhood Education Center is currently envisioned to be a 15,300-square-foot licensed center with three playgrounds, the report outlines, with slots for 16 infants, 20 toddlers, and 58 preschoolers requiring approximately 24 staff members.

In 2022, the cost estimate for the facility was about $15 million.

The report, however, suggests that the center’s creation of new preschool slots could be detrimental to the local childcare landscape without additional support for existing providers.

“The Burlingame child care center as currently envisioned has the potential to harm the existing child care infrastructure by contributing to an oversupply of preschool slots,” the report states. “The proposed model for the center should be reevaluated due to operational concerns and the potential impact on existing providers.”

In other words, by providing more preschool slots when infant and toddler care is experiencing a shortage of slots, Pitkin County could see a negative impact on finances of existing childcare providers. As it stands, the current vision for the Burlingame facility includes a 16% increase in preschool capacity in Pitkin County.

“Current providers are experiencing challenges with preschool enrollment, recruitment and retention of staff, and generating sufficient revenue to cover the full cost of care. Without careful consideration of how to mitigate these challenges, a new child care facility could exacerbate the issues,” the report states.

The report encourages Aspen City Council to reevaluate the childcare center at Burlingame to support an increase in childcare supply that meets specifically outlined unmet needs for care.

“Kids First will continue to help guide the community toward long-term solutions, supporting council’s goal of early childhood education programmatic enhancement and optimization,” the release states.

For more information and to view the full community needs assessment report, visit: aspen.gov/kidsfirst.