Council OKs $6,000 for Youth Center

Barely a month old and already drawing crowds, the LAPD’s Reseda Youth Center received an additional boost Wednesday when the Los Angeles City Council approved $6,000 to augment the center’s laboratory.

Councilwoman Laura Chick, whose funds helped establish the computer laboratory, requested council approval of the money from her General City Purposes Fund. The money will be directed through the Police Activity League Supporters, or PALS, which operates the center with the LAPD.

“This is a very important project for her,” said Eric Rose, Chick’s district director, of the councilwoman’s funding of the computer lab. “It’s a phenomenal center, and she has made it a priority to support it from the beginning.”

The latest funds will benefit a laboratory that has only four computers now but that will eventually have 15 high-speed computers, two printers and Internet access,” Rose said.

When it opened its doors July 26, Police Chief Willie L. Williams lauded the Reseda Youth Center for its recreational and educational programs and called it a “front-end intervention” against the lure of crime.

With activities ranging from computer instruction and field trips to boxing and arts and crafts, the center has been an instant hit in the neighborhood, said PALS President Richard Friedkin.

“We’ve got over 300 kids registered and they’re getting a lot of fun out of it,” said Friedkin. “It’s going very well. This is a good haven for them.”

The Reseda Youth Center is at 7033 Reseda Blvd. For more information, call (818) 342-5725.