There's no doubt about it. The Lakewood Observer Project has been a fantastic way to promote all that's good about our fair city. Those of us who write for this paper are acutely aware of our responsibility to show our town in a positive light.

That's not hard to do, either. In so many ways, Lakewood is the kind of town that people only dream of. It's such a friendly place--of beautiful homes, great businesses, and minutes-away access to Lake Erie, the Metroparks, and downtown Cleveland.

While we are certainly an aging, inner-ring suburb, we also seem to do a great job staying on top of necessary updates and improvements. New schools, a fine updated library, and scheduled street repairs have all given evidence that we continue to be on the right track in many areas.

There is one area of concern, however, that seems to pop up quite a bit in our discussions around town: youth activities. Let's face it, there's not a lot of space around town available for informal activities for young people.

This is not a new problem either. Growing up on a Lakewood side street, we "young-uns" were constantly in trouble with neighbors who somehow objected to having some kid hiding in their rosebushes or swatting a baseball through a window. Back then, one of the most popular shows on TV was "Combat!" starring Vic Morrow and Rick Jason. World War II was a big part of our vivid imaginations, so some of us played "war" with half our crew playing the part of "the enemy" and the other, the good guys. We would stage attacks up and down the street all day with our toy guns. Can you imagine what would happen today if a Lakewood resident saw a bunch of young people running up the street with toy guns? Even though toy guns these days seem to come with bright red barrel tips, I would suspect that the SWAT team would be out in force in no time, and the youngsters' pseudo-military uniforms would quickly be exchanged for orange jump suits!

Yes, these days it seems any group of young people running up the street for any reason would cause someone to call the law.

So what's a kid to do? Bike riding was fun then and now. Even though new laws have afforded greater clarity for cycles using the public roadways, using one's bike on a Lakewood roadway is a reason for vigilance. There are so many cars and (let's just call them) distracted drivers out there that even riding one's bike on a Lakewood side street can be a harrowing experience.

Skateboards have been popular with young people for many years. Modern 'boarders are often surprised to learn that skateboards were even around in my day. Originally, some of these (like mine) had metal wheels, styled from those sidewalk skates that we used to try to go up and down Lakewood's often-uneven sidewalks. In the late fifties, I believe that it was the Roller Derby company who came out with the first production skateboards; although scooters and gliding soapboxes had been fashioned from parts of old roller skates for years. As kids became more skilled with their skateboards, it became fashionable to ride on concrete steps or metal railings. This probably contributed to a number of banged-up heads, knees, and elbows. Some also felt that skateboards might cause expensive damage to property. Eventually, we put in a skatepark at Lakewood Park, perhaps to lure the half-pipe crowd away from Lakewood's downtown buildings?

Tennis used to be quite popular, too. It is still an enjoyable pastime, and tennis courts may still be found around town. Lakewood's Little Link golf course used to be a popular pastime, however this year the facility remains closed.

Another closed group of facilities includes the schools' outdoor basketball courts. There has been quite a bit of discussion on the Lakewood Observer's on-line "Observation Deck" regarding this topic. Many people would like to see those hoops put back up, while others are glad that they have come down. Basketball, especially this summer with the Cleveland team in the playoffs, has been incredibly popular. It is, however, a loud game played by enthusiastic participants, and that can be bothersome to a quiet community. I would imagine that there would also be the problem of liability for anyone who gets hurt during a game. In fact, I would guess that concerns of liability have closed doors to a number of activities for young people in the past several years. This can make it more difficult for young people to find ways to have unsupervised fun in a densely populated suburb like ours.

Fortunately, Lakewood does have a number of ways for young people to have supervised fun. Sports activities, as well as Scouting programs and other community activities, are happening all the time. Sometimes they can be a little hard to find, but calls to the schools, the library, area churches, and city hall will usually uncover some of the many supervised activities going on around here for young people as we mark the pulse of this city.