Sunday’s Postcard from the Slope about the teens who had to be hauled off in ambulances Friday night because they’d consumed too much alcohol seems to have struck a nerve with some OTBKB readers.

A friend wrote: "I think this kind of stuff happens more than it should because there
aren’t enough places for these kids to hang out, to call their own. I
know this sounds ridiculous in a place like NYC, but the truth is that
many establishments — coffee houses, etc, discourage big groups of kids
from entering and/or hanging out. I think a good community center with
movies, a cafe, a place for garage bands to perform, goings-on, and
space to just hang — away from parents and other pesky authority
figures — would go a long way toward preventing the kind of excess you
saw in the 321 playground the other night. How about the building on
the corner of 2nd Street and 7th Ave.? Or the abandoned house next to
Carvel?"

I agree with my friend that the slope’s teens would really benefit from a place to call their own. The center could also have chess tables, games, a stage for performance art, stand up comedy, plays, poetry readings and more. There could also be plenty of art supplies and lots of space for creative activities.

Setting up something like this is a tricky proposition. How do you create a space  that it is safe and well-supervised without it feeling intrusive, restrictive and, well, uncool. Maybe the people at the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Store have some suggestions: they seem to have figured out how to create the kind of place kids really want to be.

Yours from Brooklyn,
OTBKB