Last month, the small city of Gonzales, California in the Salinas Valley achieved a remarkable milestone — the opening of its first community center complex, equipped with a Teen Innovation Center, a library, and ample recreation and homework space. While the city helped bring the roughly $28 million project to fruition, it was not the lead driver. The center was conceived, designed, and coordinated by the precocious Gonzales Youth Council, a body made up of local high school students.
Over the past decade, the youth council’s work has put many government bodies to shame. It has launched sustainability campaigns, written its own youth mental health policy, and convinced the local school district to hire a licensed social worker. The council wrote its own “social hosting” policy to discourage underage drinking, which was ultimately adopted as a city ordinance. It has even influenced cannabis policy in the city.
The Gonzales Youth Council is such a breath of fresh air that it helped convince the National Civic League to declare Gonzales an “All-America City” in 2023.
The inspiration is palpable. Soledad, Greenfield, and Salinas have formed their own youth councils modeled on Gonzales’, and the possibility of a future regional youth council is currently being discussed.
Former Gonzales City Manager Rene Mendez — who now manages Salinas — recently spoke to Zócalo Public Square’s Joe Matthews about the miracle of the Gonzales Youth Council. Mendez noted that the body of teens has “outlived city councils, mayors, city managers.”
“If you can capture the essence of the youth in your community, the sky’s the limit,” Mendez added. “I can’t wait to see it in another 10 years.”
Read more about the Gonzales Youth Council and its achievements here.