The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Council votes for study of teen center

By Natasha Collins

City Councilmembers unanimously agreed Nov. 11 that Sunnyvale should study the possibility of opening a teen center somewhere in town.

"Outreach to the teen community is very important," Councilman Landon Noll said. "They need a place to call their own."

Some Sunnyvale teens who attended the meeting agreed.

"There is a void of things to do [for residents] between the ages of 13 and 18, and I feel a teen center would fill that," said Yogi Patel, a senior at Homestead High School.

The council agreed to investigate funding for a teen center. Where the teen center will be located has not yet been determined. Proposed sites include the Lakewood Park building, the Murphy Park building, the Washington Park building and the Raynor Activity Center.

More than 300 teens from Homestead and Fremont high schools and Columbia and Sunnyvale middle schools participated in a survey and voiced their concerns about what they felt was missing in the community. Of the 360 students surveyed:

* 160 teens requested after-school programs;

* 137 would like art, drama, dance and/or music programs;

* 112 wanted a homework center;

* 109 supported a teen coffee house;

* 97 were interested in leadership programs; and

* 71 teens requested a drop-in teen center.

An upcoming report by city staff will include costs of running the center, the types of activities that would be offered and the hours of operation. The staff will also look into the possibility of pursuing partnerships with school districts to use school facilities and installing portables to be used for after-school activities.

If a teen center is approved, it will serve both middle school and high school students. But a staff report suggests separate facilities for the age groups because the needs of younger teens are different than the needs of older ones.

According to a national survey by the Carnegie Institute, 22 percent of all juvenile crimes are committed between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.; further, one in three children ages 12-17 comes home to a house where there is no adult supervision. The city hopes the teen center will deter dangerous and illegal activities by giving teenagers a place to spend their time productively.

Proposed activities at the center include:

* Youth employment training and work opportunities;

* a tutoring and homework center; and

* a place that would offer socialization, entertainment, refreshments and other activities.

A teen center was previously located at San Miguel School but was closed in 1991 to make room for a Head Start program. The teen center served 13- to 19-year-olds and was open 20 to 25 hours a week. During the last year of operation, the center served 20 to 30 teens each evening, with attendance as high as 50 to 60 on some nights. Activities at the center included softball, billiards, fooseball, pingpong, volleyball, sport tournaments, music nights and special events.

City staff members hope to receive outside funding to help offset costs of the center so that services to the teens would be free. They would also like to keep costs to the teens at a minimum, or offer fee waivers to participants who are most "at-risk" and are less likely to participate in programs if they must pay for them, Steward said.

Councilwoman Pat Vorreiter said transportation and other obstacles should not be an issue.

"We need to make sure that everyone is allowed to participate," she said.

The City Council meets every Tuesday at 8 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers. Meetings may also be viewed on KSUN, Channel 18.

[ Back to Contents Page | Sunnyvale Sun Home Page | Archives ]

This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, November 19, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.