Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer began his public career at the age of 16 when he was appointed to his local community board. Given his background, it may come as no surprise that he supports an effort to give teenagers the right to vote on the boards.
While state law allows two members of each board to be under the age of 18, they are not given full voting rights. But a recent bill introduced into the state legislature and a supportive resolution introduced in the City Council aim to change that.
Although many community board committees have yet to vote on the matter, the reaction among community board chairs around the city has been mixed. While some see value in gaining a youth perspective, others don’t feel teenagers would be mature enough to make responsible choices.
The bill has been introduced in both chambers of the state legislature and the city resolution supporting it has five sponsors.
“It is important to have representatives on community boards which represent a cross section of the community. Involvement of young people who represent the future of our city will bring an important and fresh perspective to the issues facing our community,” State Senator Andrew Lanza, a sponsor of the bill, said.
And some community board chairs agree.
“Joining a community board is a fantastic, real world introduction to grassroots democracy and citizen participation in government,” argues Craig Hammerman, chair of Community Board 6 in Brooklyn and a candidate for City Council.
“We let 16 year olds drive cars with learner’s permits. We let them get married with parental consent. They can be tried as adults. They work. They even pay taxes. Why shouldn’t they have some say in how their tax dollars could be spent?”
Manhattan Community Board 2 “is already focusing on issues that directly affect young people and their parents - such as school overcrowding and the need for more open space and having members from younger generations is important to our work on these issues,” says the board’s chairperson, Brad Hoylman.
But others see things differently.
“Personally, I believe teens do not have the life experience needed to vote on any community board issues,” says Theresa Scavo, the chair of Community Board 15 in Brooklyn. “Voting on issues vital to the quality of life in a community takes a certain maturity. I do not believe any teen has the interest or drive needed.”
Betty Braton, chairperson of Community Board 10 in Queens, agrees with this sentiment. “A concern would be that we would perhaps see teens seeking to be appointed more to have an item to add to a college application or resume rather than out of sincere interest,” she elaborates. “We often have young people attending our meetings, however most are their to fulfill a class assignment for a high school or college course rather than out of great interest in what’s going on.”
Still, even some strong supporters of the bill see problems simply getting young people involved with community boards in the first place. “I’m 41, and I’m considered young!” laments Tony Perez Cassino, chair of Community Board 8 in the Bronx. He points out that nobody on his board is in even in their 20s. “We are missing the youth perspective.”
