Give the clubs a chance

Controversy continues to rage on both sides of the issue concerning the construction of Boys and Girls Clubs on Conejo Valley Unified School District middle school campuses.

On the plus side, the schools will have free use during school hours of new million-dollar state of the art facilities with a technology center and multiple classrooms. Additionally, police and school officials have lined up to say that they believe having such facilities will cut down on the problem of kids being left without adult supervision in the after-school hours before working parents can return to the home. It’s also claimed that the existence of clubs in other areas has had demonstrable affect on student illicit drug use.

The Boys and Girls Club would own and maintain the facility, which would be no larger than 10,100 square feet in size. Should the agreement break down, remedies include the district purchasing the building, club officials having it removed, or donating the facility to the district.

However, some say clubs are not needed because there are already after-school programs in place. If they were sufficient, then there wouldn’t still be an ongoing problem with unsupervised students getting into trouble.

The other concern that has been vocalized is that area residents don’t want clubs in their neighborhoods because it might increase traffic, and it might attract undesirable elements to the area. These complaints seem to be little more than obvious displays of NIMBYism.

Only one club is going in at the present time. Instead of fighting what clearly may be highly beneficial to the Conejo Valley, sit back and watch what happens at this one site.

There’s always time later to say, "I told you so."