Teen Center Takes Aim At Underage Drinking

Drinking and drug abuse are two of the biggest problems facing teens in Rockville Centre, but a local youth advocate says that could that change if teens just had an alternative, safe place to hang out.

Mike Caffrey, president of the village's Youth Council, said opening a teen center would help cut down on underage drinking by giving them a safe place to fraternize. Caffrey polled around 100 village teens on the idea of a center, and most were receptive to a "coffee-shop" type hangout that would have couches, televisions, and host open-mic and band nights, he said. Caffrey added that teens said they'd ideally want the center located in the middle of the village, like by the Fantasy Movie Theater on Park Avenue, and would want it open on the weekends.

" It's gotten to the point where there is little for teens to do in town," Caffrey said. "They go to Starbucks and the pizzerias and they get kicked out. "

Kelsey McKenna, a South Side High School senior, said that she and her friends could see a teen center working if it showcased independent or student-made films and offered snacks and drinks. She added that she feels like there is nothing to do in the village, entertainment-wise, for kids her age.

"I think a teen center would be successful because it'll give kids another option for entertainment on a weekend night," McKenna said. "I'm not sure if it'll solve all the problems, but I do think that having an alternative place to hang out would discourage kids from thinking that drinking is the only thing to do."

Charles Gennario, Rockville Centre's Police Department Commissioner, explained that teens have told him that, "there isn't anything for them to do," so many of them resort to drinking on the footbridges to Hempstead Lake State Park or on random streets in the village. Gennario explained that though officers cannot issue appearance tickets to teens under 16, they still write up to 15 underage drinking tickets per night, and if they had more manpower, could give out as many as 30 a night on the weekends.

The biggest issue is where to house a center and how to fund it. Mayor Mary Bossart said she would prefer housing it in one of the village's facilities, but if the Youth Council — a 501 c3 public charity — wanted to run it at an independent site, it would have to fund it independently.

Caffrey noted that most teens told him that they wouldn't attend a teen center housed at the village's recreation center because it's where they hung out when they were in middle school.

Caffrey said he is looking into some local businesses, like Revolution Yoga on North Village Avenue, to possibly host the center, but first they have to find the funding. "We're applying for some grants now," he said. "There are a lot of open storefronts, and we could probably get a good deal, we just don't have the money for it."