Members of the Seminole Youth Council told city leaders Tuesday night that they have a dilemma: there’s virtually nothing for local youth to do here. But right after stating the problem, they offered a solution.

The Youth Council, which is comprised of students from Seminole and Varnum High School, asked the city to build an entertainment center complete with a bowling alley, mini golf course and an arcade.

“Right now, Seminole has a couple of outdoor parks, and their main target is kids and families. These parks can be used during good weather, but we don’t really have that many places to go whenever it’s cold outside and whenever the weather is not nice. We do have the wellness center, but that’s mostly for people who want to work out,” Youth Council member Ava Adams said.

“The challenge right now is, we have limited activities for us. We mostly go to school activities and we can’t do those during the summer. We go to Shawnee three to five times a week to go bowling or just whatever we can’t do here, and that takes away the money that could be going into Seminole,” Adams stated.

Adams added that groups of youth also hang out in local business parking lots, but they often get “kicked out” over noise complaints. “If we were to build this, that would take away the noise complaints and bring more money to Seminole,” Adams said.

In a tag-team presentation, the young presenters did much more than simply ask for the entertainment complex. They shared a plan with the city council that includes potential locations and financing options.

The Youth Council said they studied several potential locations for the entertainment center but narrowed it down to three: across from the softball quad, the corner of Highways 9 & 99, or the former Oil Museum on Wrangler Boulevard.

As far as financing is concerned, the Youth Council proposed that they acquire funds from the city’s tourism budget, which totals roughly $60,000 per year, and take out a 20-year bank note in that amount. The group has also targeted several foundations that provide grants for such ventures and suggested a community match program to help with funding.

Later during the public comments portion of the city council meeting, local businessman Lee Randle said a bank note would not be necessary, because he and another businessman are willing to invest in the youth center.

“I am here for all of these kids. I have a plan for them,” Randle said. “Instead of you getting a bank note for $60,000, Reefer Shack and I will fund your note. We have you covered for every dollar. A lot of people in this room have money to have fun, but they’re not doing anything with it. I want to step up because I have a lot invested in this town.”

The city council, as well as those attending Tuesday’s meeting, applauded the Youth Council for their initiative and the professionalism in their presentation.

“You blew me away. You’re so far ahead of me when I was in high school, there’s no comparison,” Ward III Councilman Tim Poplin told the group. “I was really worried about the generation coming up, but ya’ll put that to rest.”

The Seminole Youth Council, led by Briana Wymore, is a program that was developed last year by the city to educate students on the local government and the community. The group has met once a month for the past six months.

Current Youth Council members include Ava Adams, Gabe Atyia, Ashley Baker, Kerri Benard, Myles Branson, Maya Carter, Carson Dean, Colin Frederick, Addison Hill, Jaci Porter, Jaxon Smith and Vanessa Zapata.