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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, A pr il 19 , 2 01 8 |16 NEWS Bronte Youth Centre shutting its doors May 18 Closing due to declining attendance and program participation Metroland photo Aabed Farag plays a game of pool with Mayor Rob Burton at the official opening of the Bronte Youth Centre in 2009. OAKVILLE-The Bronte Youth Centre, located at 2996 Lakeshore Rd. W., will close its doors on May 18 due to a steady decline in at­ tendance and program par­ ticipation. Town staff made the an­ nouncement April 12 and noted the Town of Oakville would reallocate centre's funding to new youth initia­ tives, including temporary "pop-up" youth centres to better meet the needs of various neighbourhoods throughout town. They said the Queen Elizabeth Park Youth Cen­ tre, located at 2302 Bridge Rd., is less than three kilo­ metres from the Bronte Youth Centre and has expe­ rienced steady growth in at­ tendance. This facility will contin­ ue to operate as a dedicated youth centre. Town staff said the Not- tinghill Youth Centre, which opened in Glen Ab­ bey in 2016, has also been very successful and will re­ main open. "Engaging and involving our youth is critical to the success and livability of our community," said Oakville Mayor Rob Burton. "We are exploring new ways to reach and connect with them." The town is implement­ ing a temporary youth cen­ tre model at River Oaks Community Centre and Sixteen Mile Sports Com­ plex. Town staff said when large groups of youths started gathering in the lobby areas and hallways of these facilities, staff opened up available rooms and made video games, ping pong and snacks available along with staff supervi­ sion. They said in both loca­ tions, the pop-up youth cen- "Engaging and involving our youth is critical to the success and livability of our community. We are exploring new ways to reach and connect with them ." - Oakville Mayor Rob Burton tres attracted a significant number of participants. "This more flexible ap­ proach to engaging youth will allow our youth servic­ es to be more responsive to trends and demand in all areas of town," said Nina de Vaal, the town's director of recreation and culture. The town will explore other potential youth cen­ tre locations such as school gymnasiums and parks. The Bronte Youth Cen­ tre officially opened in April 2009, however, youths had been attending the fa­ cility since January of that year. In its first few weeks the centre had 100 youths regis­ tered and attracted up­ wards of 20 teens a night. The centre was estab­ lished for teens aged 13-19 years old and opened with a wide range of programs and services such as home­ work help, resume writing and job search workshops, community volunteer op­ portunities and free activi­ ties including movie nights, cooking/baking classes. It also had an on-site li­ brary, computers with in­ ternet access, a big-screen TV with surround sound, gaming system with video games, a foosball table and a pool table. "Most of the time, you re­ ally come for the people," said Aabed Farag, 17, dur­ ing the Bronte Youth Cen­ tre's official opening in 2009. "Sometimes we have nothing else to do, so we just come here. You meet new people, new friends and meet people from dif­ ferent schools." For more information about the town's youth ser­ vices visit www.oakville- .ca. V2/ access abilities I 11 Y ou r a b ility s to re .O u r passion. W e c a n h e lp y o u w ith y o u r h o m e h e a l th c a r e n e e d s a n d w e 'll d o it w ith a sm ile • We carry major brand • Straight or curved • Indoor or outdoor • We install and service Visit our well stocked retail outlets for a free dem o & m eet our friendly staff! 549 Bronte Rd, Oakville 905-825-5335 info@accessabilities.ca D IS154 Norseman St, Etobicoke 414-237-9654 www.accessabilities.ca n K e v i n F l y n n , M P P O a k v i l l e D o y o u h a v e a q u e s t i o n o r c o n c e r n r e l a t i n g t o t h e p r o v i n c i a l g o v e r n m e n t ? P l e a s e d o n 't h e s i t a t e t o c o n t a c t m e a t m y c o m m u n i t y o f f i c e -- w e 'r e h e r e t o h e l p . C o m m u n i t y O f f i c e : 2318 Lakeshore Rd. W„ Unit 2 Oakville, ON L6L 1H3 Tel 905.827.5141 Fax 905.827.3786 57 @MPPKevinFlynn f MPP Kevin Flynn kflynn.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org www.kevinflynn.onmpp.ca [E N J O Y I e v e r y l e v e l of your home w ith a 1 S T A I R L I F T mailto:info@accessabilities.ca http://www.accessabilities.ca mailto:kflynn.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org http://www.kevinflynn.onmpp.ca