Township to vote on child care center ordinance Measure will require home-based facilities to register with clerk BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer WOODBRIDGE - Stemming from an August incident that left an 11-month-old Carteret boy dead at a home-based day-care center in Iselin, the Township Council introduced a Child Care Center Ordinance at a Township Council meeting in November. "This ordinance looks to provide information to the fire and police departments and the first aid squads informing the emergency personnel that the single-family house [they may respond to] may have a home-based daycare center operating inside," said Ward 1 Councilman Charles Kenny, who spearheaded the ordinance. "A person operating this type of day-care center with five kids and below doesn't need to register with the state, and the problem is we don't know how many are operating in the township." The Township Council will have a final reading and vote on the ordinance at the Township Council meeting on Dec. 18. "Most of the time, we respond to a fire at a single-family house thinking that a single family lives there," said Kenny, who has been a firefighter with the Woodbridge Fire Department for 23 years. "This ordinance will provide us the information so we know what to look for." The 11-month-old Carteret boy, Tahir Francis, was under the care of Beverly Bryant at her Carver Street residence in Iselin for approximately three months when ordinance he was killed on Aug. 23. Bryant has been a licensed day-care provider with the state of New Jersey for 12 years at her home. A 9-year-old boy, who was also under the care of Bryant, was charged with the death of Francis. It is alleged that the 9-year-old juvenile physically assaulted the infant on Aug. 23, causing multiple skull fractures. Bryant's day-care center was last inspected on Aug. 7, with minor items that Bryant quickly abated, and the center was up for registration renewal in October. According to the ordinance, a person who operates a facility that is maintained for the care, development or supervision of five children or fewer, who attend the facility for less than 24 hours a day, will be required to fill out a free registration form providing the name and address of the owner and operator of the child-care center, address of the childcare center, the number of children cared for at the center on a day-by-day basis, and the hours of operation of the center. The ordinance goes on to say that every registration form must be filed with the Township Clerk (John Mitch). The registration must be signed by the registering party if an individual, or by a duly authorized agent if a partnership or cooperation. The clerk will forward the completed registration form to the police department, local enforcing agency [LEA], fire prevention bureaus, and first aid squads serving the area in which the childcare center is located. All child-care centers must comply with the ordinance within 90 days of adoption or be subject to the penalties of a fine not to exceed $100. "Our goal is the safety for the kids, and with this ordinance, we hope to address that as soon as possible," said Kenny.