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4.2. SR 07-20-1998~ity of MEMORANDUM Item #4.2. TO: FROM: DATE: SUBJECT: Mayor & City Council Pat Klaers, City Adm~rator i' July 20, 1998 Boys & Girls Club Update Councilmember Thompson is the Chair of the temporary Board of Directors of the Elk River Boys & Girls Club. Mayor Duitsman is also on the Board. The Lions Club is working with this organization for the construction of a facility in Lions Park. The Boys & Girls Club is moving forward with its fundraising efforts (see attached newspaper articles), in order to provide money for the construction of the facility and for the operation of the club during the first year. Street/Park Superintendent Phil Hals and his crew are working with the Lions Club in the preparation of the building site. The city attorney is awaiting information from Boys and Girls Club and the local financial institutions in order to structure a lease document between the Boys and Girls Club and the city which would allow for the construction project to take place in Lions Park. The conditional use permit for the project has already been approved. Councilmember Thompson or Mayor Duitsman will be in attendance at this meeting and should be able to provide everyone with an update on the progress being made on this project. \\elkriver \sys\shrdoc\co uncil\bysglsup .doc 13065 Orono Parkway · P.O. Box 490 · Elk River, MN 55330 · TDD & Phone: (612) 441-7420 · Fax: (612) 441-7425 lin Brief Youth go door-to- door for club Five young people are going door to door in the Salk Junior High School neighborhood to raise funds for the Boys and Girls Club of Elk River. They hope to raise $1,000, which they understand could be matched by an Elk River business. The Boys and Girls' Club Steering Committee is cooperating with the Elk River Lions Club to build the club in Lions Community Park. The teenagers are solic- iting the money as a part of their summer school program through the ' Private Industry Work Force Council Carmen Weinzetl, one of the five, said, "Once this BOYs and Girls Club building is completed, Elk River will have a non-violent, drug-free and all-around saf~ place for the youth of tomor- row.'' The five teens are Wayne Leistico, Terry' Carlson, Travis Ramsey, Carmen Weinzetl and Joe Loftus. 16,/qqg Teens are collecting money for youth center Hello, we are a group of teens who are attending sum- mer school through the Private Industry Work Force Council, and are working on a fund-raising project for the Boys and Girls Club of Elk River. This is a program that is helping us to' earn credits for school, and is also helping us :~ learn more about what it is like to have a job. For our work experience, we are doing the fund raiser for the Boys and Girls Club. Our goal is to raise as much money as we can to help build the club. Daryl Thompson, president of the Elk River Boys and Girls Club has promised to find us a business that will match what we raise, dollar for dollar, up to Sx,ooo. We think this is a great learning experience. Once this buildin.~, is complete, Elk River will have a non-violent, drug-free and all-around safe place for the youth of tomor- row to:hang out. So please · help by donating some money to help build the club.- Wayne Leistico, Terry Carlson, Travis Ramsey, Carmen Weinzetl and Joe Loftus Fun City owner donates to drive, for Elk River Boys and Girls Club i by Michelle Moriarity · Staff writer For FunCity co-owner , Margaret Thibodeau, the deci- .sion to donate money to Elk 'River's Boys and Girls Club ,was an easy one. "It kind of stems back to why iwe started this place," 'Thibodeau said of the family '~amusement facility she and iher husband opened 10 years , ago in Otsego. ' Thibodeau's son complained ',that no activities were avail- '.able in the area. So the ,Thibodeaus opened and have i gradually expanded their ,business into a year-round '.venue, with such activities as 'miniature golf, lazer tag, ',bumper cars and arcade i games. · This spring Thibodeau decid- ed to contribute to the Elk River community on a differ- ent level by donating $1,000 toward the construction of a Boys and Girls Club facility in Lions Park as part of the "Buy a Brick" fund raiser for the center. Local attorney and Boys and Girls Club treasurer Paul Motin said Thibodeau's dona- tion is probably one of the five largest contributions so far. "It was good in that it got other people to think about giving larger amounts," Motin said. · ' Othe~ organizations that matched or donated even more than Thibodeau's contri- bution include Century 21 White Dove Realty and the Elk River Kiwanis Club. Boys and Girls Club officials have raised more than $210,000 to date, Motin said. Their goal is $800,000. The facility is scheduled to open about mid-fall. Thibodeau said that this kind of youth facility is long overdue in Elk River. "We felt we had the interest and hoped the community Front row: Joshua Zoccoli, Justin Kuklocki, Dustin Weber, Derek Francis. Back row: Emerald Gratz, Margaret Thibodeau, Megan Bykowski. (Photo by Peg Zoccoli) would support us," she said. "It would be nice to see all businesses buy a brick." In addition to supporting local youth organizations and fund raisers, Thibodeau also employs more than a dozen individuals from ages 16 to 24.