The World Needs Day Care Providers, Too
It is not every day that a movie villain comes to life, but it sure seems like Caddyshack’s Judge Elihu Smails is alive and well in Lakeway, Texas.
Bianca King is a single mother of two who lost her job early in the pandemic. Instead of applying for unemployment insurance benefits, however, she decided to start her own business offering quality affordable child care out of her home.
The parents of the children King cares for are all very happy with her services. Her four closest neighbors all support her business, as does the current mayor of the city.
Unfortunately, King’s backyard abuts the tee box at the eighth hole of the local country club’s golf course, and the former mayor of the city, who also happens to be a member of the country club, does not like hearing or seeing children play while he is playing golf.
The former mayor and two other golfers complained to the city about King’s daycare business, and the city told her she would have to apply for a “home occupation” permit for her business to continue.
King readily complied with the application process, which took five months and included two public hearings. Her neighbors and the current mayor all testified on her behalf. But the city’s Zoning and Planning Commission denied her permit on the grounds that her day care business was not “undetectable” from the outside.
The golfers are now pushing the city to shut down her day care immediately.
Fortunately, the Institute for Justice has agreed to take on King’s case for free. It filed a temporary restraining order against the city that would prevent officials from shutting down her day care until the Texas Supreme Court can hear IJ’s challenge to the constitutionality of the City of Lakewood’s zoning laws. A hearing is scheduled later this month.
At the climax of the movie, Smails pulls the best golfer at the country club aside and says: “Listen, your father and I prepped together, went to war together, played golf together. We built this club, he and I. And let’s face it, some people simply do not belong.”
We hope common sense prevails and King’s day care is allowed to belong in Lakeway.