Houghton County approves a loan from the revolving loan fund to support a new childcare center in Hancock. Last evening the Houghton County Commission approved a 10-year 60,000 dollar loan to Gabby’s Guppies. The newest center will offer to provide 43 childcare slots in the community.
In 2022 the county earmarked 200,000 dollars to address a lack of childcare in the region. At that time the Copper Country Great Start Collaborative estimated the county needed to create more than 500 new childcare slots to address the needs of families. And in 2023 the Start Small Build Your Childcare Business program was created to assist new childcare businesses navigate state licensing, and how to grow a sustainable business model.
With plans to expand, Gabby’s Guppies will grow from a school of five to provide care for up to 43 children. The new center will move into the Hancock Community Hub in downtown Hancock and hopes to open slots sometime in the spring.
Other action by the county in February included moving the commission’s start time up an hour. Chairman Tom Tikkanen believes the county expects a busy year in preparation for asking residents for a millage to construct a new jail. He added that with that project on the docket and other items that will require large discussion, it would be optimal for meetings to start at 3 pm. Commission Janssen offered that some residents expressed how inconvenient it may become to attend county meetings if moved earlier because of work restrictions. The commission did agree that public attendance tends to diminish when seemingly smaller actions are on the agenda and noted that there was little difference between meeting attendance when meetings were moved from 5 pm to 4 pm in 2024.
Houghton County Commission meetings will begin at 3 pm starting in March 2025.
A final action by Houghton County approved new body armor for the Houghton County Sheriff. The equipment will include a body vest and helmet. The purchase of personal protection equipment will cost the county about 24,000 dollars. The expense will come from the county general fund, as it was not budgeted for in the sheriff’s department. County Administration Chelsea Rheault confirmed Houghton County does have enough funds to cover the PPE purchase.
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