Cayuga County residents 14 and older can vote Thursday on which of four youth-focused projects receives $75,000 from the Central New York Community Foundation. The choices range from a drop-in center and school counseling to teen navigation services and agricultural education.
The foundation's Cayuga County participatory budgeting program will take online votes from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 1. The winning project will be announced that evening at a public gathering in Auburn. Residents can hear the four proposals at a virtual presentation beginning at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30.
The vote follows two early September sessions at the Booker T. Washington Center where residents and volunteers identified youth health, skills and enrichment as the funding priority. Participating organizations then submitted ideas shaped around that theme, and foundation staff helped refine the proposals, according to a Sept. 28 release from the foundation.
The $75,000 will go to the project residents select, not be divided among all four proposals. The foundation describes the process as participatory budgeting: community members identify needs, help shape possible solutions and decide where a designated funding pool goes.
Four proposals focus on youth support
Cayuga Counseling Services and The Hideout Gaming Center propose expanding an existing space into a drop-in youth center. It would offer recreation, workshops, mentoring, job and college preparation, an esports program and an audio-visual room for podcasting, streaming and video production. A youth advisory board would help shape activities and the center's environment.
The Booker T. Washington Community Center proposes a countywide Teen Resource Program. A dedicated navigator would help teenagers identify needs involving health, housing, finances, school and careers; connect them to services; arrange transportation; and follow up. The proposal also calls for access at several community settings and a teen advisory council to identify barriers and recommend changes.
Southern Cayuga Central School District wants to upgrade its Agricultural Science and Technology program with equipment, infrastructure, a larger greenhouse and an educational orchard. Students would gain hands-on experience growing, harvesting and distributing food. The foundation says produce could also support the district's food service program and the King Ferry Food Pantry.
Confidential Help for Alcohol and Drugs, or CHAD, proposes adding school-based substance-use counseling and youth support. A counselor would work with students in their schools to reduce transportation, scheduling, stigma and access barriers, while connecting students and families with other school and community resources. The proposal includes help with decision-making, coping, communication, problem-solving and self-advocacy.
The foundation says the four organizations will present their plans and answer questions at Wednesday's virtual session. Its project page provides the online meeting link and updates on the vote; the emailed release and website differ on the session's ending time, so residents should check that page before attending.
How residents can vote
All Cayuga County residents age 14 or older may vote online at cnycf.org/cayugapb from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday. The foundation says a voting link will appear on the day of the vote and two-factor authentication will be used to limit each person to one ballot. Residents unable to vote online can cast a ballot in person that evening.
Doors at the Schweinfurth Art Center, 205 Genesee St. in Auburn, will open at 5 p.m. for in-person voting. A free community celebration is planned from 6 to 7 p.m., with the winner to be announced around 7 p.m., according to the foundation's event schedule. Residents and nonprofit partners can register for the gathering through the project page.
Residents who need transportation assistance can contact Sue Van Epps at 315-253-0996 or suevanepps@yahoo.com, the foundation says. The community foundation can answer program questions through senior program officer Qiana Williams at 315-883-5568.
Part of a five-county funding effort
The Cayuga vote is the fourth of five participatory budgeting projects tied to the foundation's centennial in 2027. The organization says community votes across its service area will allocate a combined $500,000. Projects in Oswego, Cortland and Madison counties have already been completed this year, and Onondaga County is planned for 2027.
The Cayuga proposals arose from the local priority residents selected, not from a county-government budget vote. Qiana Williams, the foundation's senior program officer, said the approach is intended to give residents the final decision after they identify needs and nonprofits design possible responses.
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