Van Aken District’s chaperone policy now takes effect starting at 4 p.m., citing incidents – Cleveland 19 News

SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio (WOIO) – The Van Aken District’s chaperone policy now has an earlier start time as the business and leisure center attempts to control incidents of unruly teenagers.
According to the new policy that took effect at the start of April, anyone under 18 years old must be accompanied by either a parent or adult 25 years or older as early as 4 p.m.
The previous policy didn’t require a teenage chaperone until 8 p.m.
Reactions from Monday’s Van Aken visitors were mixed.
“I’m not saying all of them but there are some out there, some riffraffs that want to tear up and everything,” said Shelia Johnson. “For them to change the policy, we have to learn.”
“Until someone becomes a problem, I not sure that they should not be let in,” commented Scott Lees.
Gena Page had a different concern for the teenagers: “I realize why it has to be done, I just don’t know where they’re gonna go, they need a place to hang out.”
General manager Jesse Rathner says the rule update is meant to curb unwanted behavior.
He explains if younger visitors come “in the sense of coming here to go shopping at a store, purchase food from a restaurant, study, listen to live music, there’d be no problem. But we were starting to see more of those other incidents outweigh those.”
The policy change also comes a few weeks after a March 22nd “teen takeover”, where over 100 teenagers coordinated through social media to show up at the same time.
Rathner described the scene as chaotic:
“There were some fights that did break out that night. We did have kids taking bikes, riding them through the market hall, the hover boards, the scooters. There was a lot of vaping, there was some pot usage. There was also some physicality directed towards security officers, as well as the police officers. I do know some arrests were made that evening…for five police jurisdictions to have to get involved, that says that there was a lot of resources needed to manage this situation.”
19 News also reached out to the Shaker Heights Police Department for more information on the March 22nd takeover, but have yet to receive additional information.
Van Aken staff are asking parents to take on a bigger role in the safety of their kids.
“What we’re asking is for parents to be more engaged, to be accountable for their kids,” Rathner said. “When they show up in large groups for them to assist us.”
Van Aken staff explained the rule changes are not permanent; they can become stricter or looser depending on how patrons respond.
“We’re going to take a data-driven approach to evaluating,” Rathner said. “That will influence our ability on whether or not we’re able to make that change.”
The future of teenagers’ freedom at the Van Aken district is a question both guests and staff will continue to mull over.
“Give this place a chance. Give any place you go to a chance, you won’t have to be curfewed out,” Johnson said.
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