WISCONSIN NIMBY DEBATE

Benefits of youth center outweigh risks

Reaction to a youth center in Tomah was met with a “mix of skepticism and enthusiasm,” said Tomah Journal reporter Bob Kliebenstein in a Sept. 16 Tomah Journal article. That shouldn't be a surprise. A youth center for boys and girls ages 15-20 isn't without drawbacks and risks. The Tomah Boys & Girls Club, which already operates a center for younger children in downtown Tomah, is proposing a youth center at a vacant lumber yard next to the city of Tomah's municipal swimming pool. Any arrangement that gathers teenagers in one place has the potential to attract noise, speeding cars, trash, etc.

On balance, however, a youth center would be a good thing. First, teens are going congregate somewhere. In Tomah, they often gather, almost always unsupervised, at public parks, deserted parking lots and the downtown area. Teen-agers don't disappear just because they have no place to go. They sometimes resurface in juvenile court. Second, the vacant lumber yard owned by Stan Zdrojowy is an excellent location for such a center. Is it totally isolated? No, and it's neither plausible nor desirable to locate a center in a remote place (do we really want teen-agers driving to a center six miles in the country?). However, the Zdrojowy property isn't in a residential area, and it's hard to imagine a more appropriate location within the city limits. The key to any youth center is good, hands-on management. It matters less where a youth center is located than how the center is supervised. The Boys & Girls Club has an excellent record of supervising children in grades 3-8, but supervising older children presents a different set of challenges. Questions about security and supervision must be thoroughly answered before the city grants approval.

However, the rewards of a properly run youth center outweigh the risks. Tomah, like many communities, has a problem with unsupervised teen-agers roaming the streets. If these same teen-agers choose the positive environment of a youth center, then the city of Tomah will be a safer and more pleasant place.

21 September 2004
http://www.tomahjournal.com/articles/2004/09/20/opinion/01edyouthcenter.txt

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