Daycare Facilities Remain Closed In Buda & Kyle

Staff Reports

Daycares in the City of Kyle and the City of Buda will remain closed until the local orders signed by the cities’ mayors expire.

The decision was announced by Mayor George Haehn of Buda and Mayor Travis Mitchell of Kyle Wednesday despite Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra’s latest order calling for a shelter-at-home allowing them to remain open.

Under Becerra’s order, daycare centers are allowed to reopen so long as they apply mandated measures to ensure social distancing. 

Parents are not allowed to enter the facilities, and all children must be checked for temperatures or other symptoms before being allowed inside.

Children are to be separated into groups of ten in different classrooms and must remain in their original group until further notice. This is to prevent co-mingling between groups and reduce the chances of exposure.

However, Mayor Haehn closed all Buda daycare centers through midnight on April 3 in the order he signed on March 20.

According to the City of Buda, this restriction for childcare facilities remains in effect until its expiration date. 

By law, local municipalities and governments are allowed to impose more restrictive measures upon residents within their jurisdiction under a disaster declaration. However, the county is granted the power to overrule local municipalities if it feels it is necessary. 

The City of Kyle released an update following the issuance of the shelter-at-home order that listed childcare facilities among its businesses that should remain closed.

Some Kyle residents have expressed support for the daycare closures citing that the number of children being diagnosed with COVID-19 is on the rise across the country.

City of Kyle officials said, “City orders cannot be more lenient than those placed by Counties, State or Federal. However, they can be more restrictive, and our city order that closed playscapes, pools, daycares, and applied additional measures at gas stations remains in effect.”

The families most heavily impacted by daycare center closures are those who are considered “Essential” employees, such as health care professionals, city employees, and first responders. 

The City of San Marcos advised residents Wednesday night to follow the county’s order and did not indicate it would require daycare facilities to remain closed. 

  • The City of Kyle’s order signed March 24 can be read here
  • The City of Buda’s order signed March 20 can be read here

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4 Comments

  1. I have to drive 30 minutes from home in San Marcos to drop kids off at daycare in Travis County, then 20 back to Kyle for work, then 20 minutes again to pick up the kids, and 30 minutes home again. Almost 2 hours of time I could be at work. The time and gasoline is getting costly. Normally daycare is on the way to work.

    1. And your point other than telling us how you’ve no problem dumping your child into an epicenter of in-your-face activities? Call it day–care, but don’t ask us to believe your actions under the circumstances amount to reasonable care. Amazing the values demonstrated by some people, not what they talk about. I mean when they say they’re going to make a” realistic decision”, you can be assured they’re going to do something bad. wow.

        1. Mr. Patton,
          I’m not saying you were forced to sign a mortgage, nor do I believe you consciously choose to leave your child in an environment where their health is gambled on behalf of your mortgage. What I am saying is, step back, look and what you’re doing, and ask yourself the question: do such “realistic decisions” get me closer to my happiness or further from it? From the sound of it so far, it appears that you simply want to pretend everything is the same old rush rush and oh poor me. Wake up.

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