Representatives of the CanTeen made their rounds to local municipal boards last week, reporting on the center’s 2015 activities to the Cicero Town Board on Jan. 27 and the North Syracuse Board of Trustees on Jan. 28.
Youth Services Coordinator Toni Brauchle and a gaggle of teenaged CanTeen users reported that the CanTeen welcomed 610 unduplicated youth through its doors last year. Sixty-nine of these unique visitors were from the village of North Syracuse. Brauchle said the center saw 9,640 total visits, 1,624 more than in 2014.
Kenzi White, a junior at Cicero-North Syracuse High School, told the board that the CanTeen gives kids “a family to go to when you don’t have one at home.”
CanTeen users went on 22 field trips last year, including to Hershey Park, Seabreeze Amusement Park and Darien Lake. Brauchle said 61 teens completed 600 hours of community service in 2015.
White said she enjoyed participating in the Teen Talk podcast, which discusses social issues among teenagers, and said she recently went to a conference for Teen Institute, an organization that encourages teens to educate each other about substance abuse and other unhealthy behavior.
Also on the agenda
Paved paradise: The village board is still looking at what percentage of a front yard may be paved. Deputy Mayor Fred Fergerson noted that a majority of respondents to a poll on northsyracuseny.org favor a law that would restrict “parked vehicles on landscaped areas of residential properties.”
Village attorney Scott Chatfield will draft a proposal for further discussion of the issue.
Consensus: Village officials encouraged residents to educate themselves and offer their opinions on the Consensus report, which suggests consolidation of certain government services between the city of Syracuse and Onondaga County. Towns and villages may be able to opt in to a regional government entity in the future.
“From our perspective at the village level, we feel very comfortable where we are, but we need to look at it because there are lots of layers of government,” Mayor Gary Butterfield said.
“We need to stress too how important it is for our village residents to participate,” Trustee Diane Browning said.
The public comment period ends March 16. To learn more, visit consensuscomment.com.