11/23/09: Feeling Welcomed

Telegraph is famous for a lot of things. Cal, Hippies, and the home to revolution. A few weeks ago we visited The Green Youth Media Arts Center at 2781 Telegraph Ave in Oakland. The center advocates for a green lifestyle. It also aims to create a positive place for teens to go and channel their energy into positive and green activities. I liked that most of its interior was recycled and remade from old bits and pieces to fit the needs of the new center. Each room also had a theme: the entrance cove was painted black to represent the womb while the next room was a light airy blue to represent one's first breath. But the thing I liked most about the center was that it was personal and sincere. Everyone we met working there believed in their cause and their compassion was evident everywhere. It was this sincerity that made me feel welcomed, which is an important part of a teen center. Visiting The Green Media Arts Center made me realize how important it is that our teen center be personal and most important, welcoming. Luckily, with all the close work we've done so far, I know we're on our way to create a great center for teens!

Also! A special thanks to Galen Peterson for showing us around The Green Youth Media Arts Center! Check out their blog here!

11/21/09: Budget Blues

Just yesterday, we found out that the cost of constructing the Teen Center in its current design is much higher than we can afford. In other words, were simply over-budgeted. As a result, there are some adjustments Pankow has provided. They recommended we take out the permeable pavement and the sun shades in front of the south and west side windows. When Tracy told us the news, I was shocked. These are two defining features of the building which I refuse to just let go of. The permeable pavement is by far one of the coolest features of our building because it allows any water on top of it to seep into the ground and the sun shades help to block out some of the sun, while adding some bold lines to increase the aesthetics. On top of all this, we’ve always been clearly on target for LEED Gold with Platinum at our fingertips. But getting rid of these items might mean we probably won’t reach our dream of Platinum.

I don’t want to see these great things about our building lost. They’re some of the features we pushed for, because we wanted them, and I want them back. So once again, we’re attempting to bring in more donations through phone calls and grant writing. Wish us luck!

11/19/09: A Colorful World

Oh it is a colorful world…But what color is it? Last week we had the pleasure of journeying to the offices of Noll & Tam to discuss the colors and designs of our inside walls and ceilings. Coming in, we only knew we wanted the building to be different and artistic. We had only planned the “go” green outside as well as the stairway mural. So when we arrived, our immediate reaction to the mound of color and design samples was to be overwhelmed. There was every color imaginable and an array of what looked like hard bubble wrap, mirrors, wooden replicas of Swiss cheese, and hundreds of different tiles.

After a couple hours and a bowl of cheese puffs, we had formulated some ideas. On each of the three floors would be a wall with a separate shade of blue and in large letters one of the words VISION, GROWTH, or AMP (our nickname for the Center – Aspirations Made Possible). We chose a red floored elevator with the possibility of black walls (I call this the scheming room). And we decided to theme each floor’s restrooms with different colored tiles. Teens will walk into the center, see the hip UFO chandelier, and know they are in a special place designed for a new era of leaders.

Here is a sample of what we were thinking. The original image looks much more blue. What do you think?

11/13/09: YMCA Annual Celebration

On Thursday October 29th, the YMCA held its annual Celebration and Dinner at the renovated Shattuck Plaza Hotel – right next door to our offices. Many different people attended the dinner, including donors, Board members, members of the YMCA and other people in the community who are excited by the Y’s work. The purpose of the event is to recognize volunteers of the year for each branch and other people who have made a significant impact in the community.

The Teen Center Task Force was lucky enough to be invited, but we also got to meet and greet people as they came in, directed them to the reception, and helped out throughout the night. We got a chance to talk with many of the guests about who we are and what we do on the Task Force, and to make them more aware about our project. The dinner was delicious, and the dessert was even better! But to top it off, there were many inspirational speakers such as Jonny Moseley, Dick Bolles and Debra Pryor. Altogether the night was a success and a lot of fun at that!