Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

Funny you should mention....

the teens ''standing en masse''. Actually they were apparently doing much more than this. My son and his cousin were a part of that crowd and they said the real teen entertainment occurred in the woods by the creek. Apparently all the cops were busy standing guard over the beer garden to make sure no one escaped with a beer into the crowd.

In the woods, which the cops apparently ignored, the teens were (allegedly) busy entertaining themselves with a variety of drugs and sex acts! Granted, the numbers were probably few and kids tend to embellish stories some, but is this acceptable in any form or numbers?

Now I know this is a strong statement, so before I bothered with this discussion board, I called the parents of three other teens I knew were there and, for the most part, the story was corroborated.

Well, well, well, the Violet Beer Festival is gaining a reputation for something more than beer after all! At least among the teens. Kids will be kids no matter the venue. I was no angel myself, but this does lend credence to the poster that said there should be something set up for the teens given the number in attendance and the money they must have spent.

Mayor, City Manager, Violet Festival Board, Trustees, Councilmen, Police Chief - why don't you consider the population of teens you have residing in this area and work together to give them something to do? Can't some sort of teen center be considered somewhere in this area? Can't you look to give them things to do in some sort of controlled environment where parents don't have to worry as much about what is going on in the woods? Can?’t you at least put up a fence along the woods for the 4 days of this festival? Can?’t you consider this part of your population and rank it up there with buying parkland, widening roads and building more strip malls?


By Parent

Get a job!!!

Clearly the lines of authority here seemed to be blurred. Obviously we had juveniles being unsupervised who clearly still need that supervision from their PARENTS.

The first reaction from parents is to blame the authorities in law enforcement. But when the cops show up on the parents door step with little Johnny high as a kite they start looking for someone to blame and they say it is only pot and he had nothing else to do in this town.

Parents let me give you some ideas. First there are help wanted signs all up and down 256 looking for unskilled labor to do everything from delivering pizza to mopping floors. If the family is so well that they can afford to give Johnny drug money regularly then they should consider volunteering at the two local nursing homes and helping feed and bathe our elderly that no longer can care for themselves. I also saw a farmer with an empty hay wagon pull through downtown just a few hours before the parade and believe once you have unloaded a couple of hay wagons then you don't have the energy to do drugs at night. Beside once you earn your own money and you work hard for that money it is less likely that you will be stupid enough to spend it on drugs and sluts in the woods.

I couldn't agree more!

Great comeback. I also believe that parents have a job and responsibility not enough take seriously. I also don't believe it was the cops job to supervise the kids and watch the forest. I am sorry to hear what was allegedly going on in the woods and I also heard a similar report. More about beer and pot in the woods. But again you know how kids juice up a story.

I also agree with Parent that there should be something for teens to do around here. I mean what do they have? When my kids were teens all I remember there was to do was go to Marcus and hang out. Fortunately they had jobs to keep them mostly occupied. I always had a job during all high school years and I agree that I was much more tight fisted with a buck earned over a buck handed to me. Heck, I actually did cut, bale and store hay for a couple of summers. Thanks for reminding me! Course all I got for that was three squares a day.

Since this is a discussion borad, let's discuss ideas for what could be done to provide a safe and fun thing for teens. Forget hammering anyone about the festival and what may have happened. Let's look for ideas of how to make things better.

How about a teen center? A place with dancing, video games, a diner? Stuff like that. Ask teens what they would like and then look for a way to get it. There seems to be enough land still left along Hill road that something could be set up. Would this be a city venture or a community venture or a private venture? Heck, I don't know but there must be people out there who do. Come on parents. Join the discussion and offer your ideas!

By Another parent

Memo to the committee

In the looking how it's done dept: Drive around the beltway and check out the Dublin Irish Festival this weekend. 85,000 expected. Advertising the past several weeks, multiple types of quality entertainment, beer not confined to a tent, no carney section, and so forth.

It can be done.