New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) Commissioner Yume Kitasei today announced that applications are now open for “The Little Apple,” the city’s first free, full-day, full-year, on-site child care pilot program for city workers.
The Little Apple’s pilot location will serve approximately 40 children ages 6 weeks to 3 years and operate out of the David N. Dinkins Municipal Building. Last month, Mayor Mamdani expanded the child care program eligibility to include all City workers based at the David N. Dinkins Municipal Building at 1 Centre Street in addition to all DCAS employees regardless of work location. The Municipal Building, one of the largest government office buildings in the world, houses more than 2,000 employees across a dozen municipal agencies. The program will operate on the ground floor of the building’s North Tower and provide year-round care Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The $10 million renovation is underway to construct a 4,000-square-foot child care facility, with completion expected this fall.
Read the full press release HERE.
APPLICATION AND ELIGIBILITY DETAILS
Applications for eligible families are open online now through May 15, 2026.
To be eligible, employees must:
- Be a full-time DCAS employee regardless of work location or a full-time City employee who is assigned to 1 Centre Street.
- Be a parent or legal guardian of a child between the ages of 6 weeks (as of Sept. 1, 2026) and 3 years old (as of Dec. 31, 2026).
One application may be submitted per family and may include multiple children per application. Families will be chosen using a random selection process, with a limited number of seats reserved for applicants seeking five-day/week enrollment. Selected participants will be notified in June. Families not selected will be placed on a waitlist and contacted if space becomes available.
Full eligibility details and application portal are available online.
