Posted by John Byrne at 1:05 p.m.
Kids caught violating curfew in three high-crime areas of the city will be sent to Chicago Park District buildings instead of police stations this summer under a trial program that Mayor Richard Daley hopes will give police a chance to present youths with alternatives to hanging out on the street.
Parents of children under age 17 found by police outside the home after 11 p.m. on weekends will have to pick them up at the parks, where neighborhood relations officers will be on hand to talk to them about community organizations and park district programs that can help with their kids.
"The park district buildings will be an easier place for young people to wait than a police station, and an easier place for us to communicate with the parents who come to pick up their own children," Daley said during a news conference at Ogden Park in the 6500 block of South Racine Avenue, one of the sites curfew violators will be brought.
"Common sense says that when you can connect students with mentors, and families with support services and information about positive activities for young people, then those young people have a better chance of avoiding violence or even joining a gang," the mayor said.
The other parks curfew violators will be diverted to on weekends are Harris Park at 6200 S. Drexel Blvd., and Piotrowsky Park, 4247 W. 31st St. The program will begin this weekend and run through October.
The city curfew this summer will remain 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.