GLENDALE : Teen Center Hopes to Reopen by Aug. 1

Community leaders have rallied to the aid of the Glendale Teen Center, which closed earlier this week due to lack of funds.

Founder Sheila Ellis said she has received numerous calls from individuals and organizations wanting to donate time, space and money to the 16-month-old center, a nonprofit facility that provides a place for teen-agers to come after school to socialize, study and participate in a variety of programs.

One resident wrote a $1,000 check after hearing of the center’s financial woes. The YWCA has donated meeting space for the center’s 12-member youth council, and the Oakmont League Juniors plan to make a cash donation. Realtor Ante Trinidad has volunteered to find space for the facility.

Ellis, who said the board was forced to choose between closing the facility and incurring debt to keep it open, emphasized that residents can pledge money without actually writing a check. When the board reaches its $100,000 goal--the amount needed to operate the center for one year--it will “call in” the pledges, she said.

The center’s board has set an Aug. 1 target date to reopen the center, pending receipt of $100,000 for operating costs or the donation of space to house the center. The board pays $24,000 each year to rent the current facility at 115 E. Lexington Drive.

The center, which provided more than 275 ninth- through 12th-graders with a place to study, socialize and have fun each month, was created after students pointed out the need for after-school activities in the city, Ellis said.

Police Lt. Jack Bilheimer voiced concern about teen-agers loitering around city facilities such as the library because they can no longer visit the center after school.

“The name of the game from a crime standpoint is to keep kids busy; they need somewhere to go after school,” said Bilheimer, a center board member.

Mayor Larry Zarian said he will volunteer to help center operators develop a long-range strategy to reopen the facility. “It will be all of our roles to make sure that this organization doesn’t fall by the wayside,” he said.

Daily High School Principal Ted Tiffany agreed, saying it’s difficult for nonprofit organizations to rely solely on private donations to keep afloat in recessionary times.

Ellis is upbeat about the center’s future, saying the youth council voted Wednesday to continue operation of a conflict resolution program by offering it to community groups that need to resolve arguments among teen-agers. The council plans to hold events to raise money to reopen the facility.

This is not the first time that the community has come together to assist in the five-year effort to bring a teen center to Glendale, Ellis said. More than $40,000 in contributions were made several years ago to renovate the present facility, she added.