Chamber Issues Forum: Childcare & Public Spaces for Public Good

Making childcare more accessible and affordable remains a top priority for the business community and is an important factor in workforce participation and growth. As employers across West Michigan face talent issues, the rising cost and limited availability of childcare remains a barrier to keeping parents from entering, reentering, or staying in the workforce.

Join the Grand Rapids Chamber for a Chamber Issues Forum exploring how public spaces and public-private partnerships can be leveraged for public good, with a focus on innovative childcare solutions. Michigan’s nationally recognized Tri-Share model has shown what is possible when business, government, and community partners work together to share responsibility and cost—demonstrating the power of collaboration to support working families while strengthening the economy.

This forum will take place at Rapid Central Station, home to a new on-site childcare facility that exemplifies how infrastructure and public space can be reimagined to meet community needs. Attendees will hear from Tracie Coffman of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation on the role of public spaces in advancing early childhood and family well-being, followed by a panel discussion featuring perspectives from architecture, policy, philanthropy, and service providers on designing and sustaining childcare solutions that work for families and employers alike.