Stirpe, Friends of the CanTeen, Inc. secure $287,000 for new teen center

(North Syracuse, NY) Assemblyman Al Stirpe (D-North Syracuse) and Friends of the CanTeen, Inc. announced that they secured $287,000 to purchase, renovate and convert a private residence into a teen center – the CanTeen. The new CanTeen will be located on Route 31 adjacent to Cicero North Syracuse High School.

Funding to purchase the home was awarded through the Community Capital Assistance Program (CCAP). In addition, Friends of the CanTeen raised funds from private donors and a large contribution was made in the name of Kaitlin Kozlowski. Kaitlin, who enjoyed spending time at the CanTeen, was a junior at Cicero North Syracuse when she died in a car accident in 2005.

“The state, county, and the Towns of Cicero, Clay, Salina and the Village of North Syracuse have provided invaluable funding for the CanTeen since day one,” Stirpe said. “But its individuals – people who have opened up their pocketbooks and volunteered their time and talents – that have kept this great program afloat.”

The new CanTeen will undergo extensive renovations. Volunteers and building professionals will add handicap ramps and sidewalks to the property, widen doorways, renovate existing bathrooms and remove walls to open up the home. The property is also situated on the lot so that it can be expanded in the future should the need arise.

The new location will reduce the cost of busing paid for by the North Syracuse Central School District. The home is a short walk from Cicero North Syracuse High School allowing students to reach the facility without crossing any major roadway.

“The CanTeen has been leasing program space for more than eleven years and has had to relocate four times in the last six years,” Stirpe said. “By purchasing a permanent home, the CanTeen will reduce its expenses in the long run and be able to direct more resources to kids.”

About CanTeen

CanTeen is a teen center and after school program that provides students with a safe environment weekdays from 2:00pm – 6:00pm. The program first opened its doors in January 1999 at the Market Place Mall and was funded through the Safes Places to Learn and Play grant awarded by the Onondaga County Youth Bureau and New York State Office of Children and Family Services.

In 2001 the Market Place Mall was demolished and the teen center was temporarily moved to the North Syracuse Community Center. In 2002 the Towns of Cicero, Clay, Salina and the Village of North Syracuse formed the Cicero Youth Bureau and took administrative control over the teen center. The center officially changed its name to CanTeen and began leasing space in the New Country Plaza in Cicero.

Friends of the Canteen, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, was formed in 2004 for the sole purpose of raising funds to support program costs for the CanTeen. In 2006 the center was relocated to Brewerton Road nearly two and one-half miles from Cicero North Syracuse High School. In 2008 Friends of the Canteen, Inc. began their search for a permanent home closer to the high school.

Stirpe, Friends of the CanTeen, Inc. secure $287,000 for new teen center

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