This week marked the return of the Milton’s Youth Council, as city officials welcomed a 13-member council to city hall in order to set foundation of what is to come for the newly reinstalled council. The council was greeted during a meet and greet with introductions from Council Member Mary Ellen Johnson, Mayor Wesley Meiss, City Manager Brian Watkins, former Mayor Guy Thompson along with Stephen Schoen. Schoen, an assistant planner with the city, will work with the youth council on regular basis.
While the council was originally intended to encompass students from Milton area schools, recent interest from PaceHigh School students may cause for growth.
“The PaceHigh School students were at (last week’s) council meeting and they had heard about it,” Johnson said. “When they are interested like that I do not want to turn anybody down.”
While Johnson anticipates having four seats available for student representatives from Pace, the vote to add more seats to the youth council has not taken place. The council is planning to meet at an unconfirmed date next month.
Iliana Borrero, a member of the PHS Student Government Association, said being involved with the Milton Council would fall in line with what needs to be accomplished with the school’s SGA.
“Part of our SGA is finding leadership skills and finding out about our community and part of that was going to a meeting that is outside of SGA,” Borrero said. “My sister told me about this meeting and now we are here.”
Borrero said Pace’s involvement in the council could lead to “the unification of Pace and Milton as a community in general.”
Seth Barlow, a junior at MiltonHigh School, said his involvement could lead to more insight into how local governments operate.
“This could be a good experience for me to know what is going on in our city and get experience into learning how I can help other people with more than just holding a door open for them and actually help them on a day-today basis,” Barlow said.
Like most council meetings, the youth council will be provided with a regular agenda prepared by city staff. Some of the major tasks facing the council are assisting the city staff at the GuyThompsonCommunity Center is finding additional afterschool activities for area youth and adding input into what the city can offer a younger generation as far as recreation.
“We recently purchased 30 acres of land by Sanders Street,” said Watkins. “We are working through what is called a Master Plan into how we would develop that 30 acres. From that we would like for the opportunity from you guys to look at that plan to make suggestions. This is an opportunity for you to look at that and have an influence on where the city is going to go.”
Mayor Meiss told the students representatives from King, Avalon, Hobbs middle schools and Pace and Milton high schools this opportunity will allow them to “leave a thumbprint on the future.”
“You got to be thinking about the future all of the time,” Meiss told the council. “You will be going off to college and starting your careers in the next 10 to 15 years. Odds are you might be starting a family here some day.”
At this time the complete list of the Milton Council has not been announced. Our publication will publish the Milton youth council list, once it’s finalized with approval from the city staff.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Newly reinstated Youth Council is introduced, expansion anticipated