The Brooklyn Park Citizen Long-range Improvement Committee (CLIC), a group of 15 volunteer citizens charged with studying long-range issues in the city, was presented with citizen survey commissioned by the City Council. The two concerns raised by most citizens were violence and a lack of things to do in the city. CLIC believed those two issues were connected and began to study the issues in further depth.

 

 

After much discussion, CLIC decided to gather more information on the topic. The committee hosted panel discussions with youth and adults in the community who work with youth. It was then decided that the issue of youth opportunities in Brooklyn Park warranted even further discussion, and a sub-committee was formed. At the same time, the Brooklyn Park Recreation and Parks Department partnered with the sub-committee in exploring the topic of youth opportunities.

 

 

In the summer and fal, the Youth Opportunities Sub-committee researched several local and national best practices models. This research phase also included visits to youth organizations in Brooklyn Park and to other cities in the Twin Cities metro area to learn about their programs. The sub-committee also continued to solicit feedback from youth in the community regarding their needs. 

 

After much research, the sub-committee began discussing the shape of the youth opportunities movement in Brooklyn Park. On January 22, the City Council approved the use of city staff time to assist the sub-committee members in forming a youth opportunities council and to help determine funding sources. At this time, the sub-committee began formulating plans for the current Youth Opportunities Coalition structure.

 

The City of Brooklyn Park received a $50,000 grant from the McKnight Foundation to encourage civic engagement by under-represented populations in the City. On June 25, the City Council unanimously approved the creation of the Youth Opportunities Coalition, and set aside $10,000 of the grant money to hire a part-time youth opportunities coordinator. At the same time, two youth planning interns were hired to work with the coordinator to help establish the Youth Opportunities Coalition.