New acting executive director Ryan Peters (front) and senior Side Door coordinator Jay Bulckaert hope new programs will inspire teenagers. - Jennifer McPhee/NNSL photo

The $500,000-plus centre was built to give youth a safe place to hang out. But in recent months, it has gained a reputation for being dangerous.

"It seemed like Friday and Saturday nights were almost a haven for violence to start," said the centre's new acting executive director Ryan Peters.

Kevin Laframboise, one of the driving forces behind the Side Door, which had its origins eight years ago with Holy Trinity Anglican Church, has taken a six-month leave of absence as executive director of the drop-in centre.

In the month and a half before axing the weekend drop in, five assaults occurred in and around the building.

Four of the incidents took place just outside. One girl -- jumped by five others outside -- walked into the centre bleeding. In another case, an intoxicated teenager began punching another youth on the couch.

The centre was becoming the place teenagers met, before heading out for a night of drinking, said Peters.

"It became a place where the party starts," said Peters. "So we felt closing it on Friday and Saturday nights was the best way to stop the Side Door from being the origin of these kinds of incidents."

Staff caught teens smoking pot inside and according to senior coordinator Jay Bulckaert, some teens pour alcohol into their pop bottles.

Bulckaert said some Yellowknife teens are into harder drugs than just marijuana. He knows a 13-year-old girl who sells cocaine.

But some wonder if teens will just get into more trouble now that the Side Door is closed Friday and Saturday nights -- times when some kids need it most.

Fourteen-year-old Cliff thinks so. He hangs out at the Side Door whenever it's open. While he understands why the centre cut its weekend drop in program, he doesn't like it.

"It's a good place to hang out when you're bored outside," he said. He confesses he was told to leave the Side Door once because he was intoxicated. And he has committed four break and enters in his short life.

When asked why he breaks into places, he shrugs, seems embarrassed and admits he doesn't really know.

But the likable young man thinks he'll end up in more trouble without a place to hang out on weekends.

Side Door staff have heard this argument before from both parents and kids.

"They say, because of this, (kids) will go out and drink," said Bulckaert. "But the reality of the situation was kids would come here drunk and assault each other. It usually happened on Friday and Saturday nights."

"We even heard that some parents don't let their kids come here because they'll get beat up here or that there's drugs and alcohol here."

Not enough staff

The centre has strict rules about violence, drugs and alcohol. The problem is enforcing the rules -- there just isn't enough staff to keep an eye on everyone.

Bulckaert is the only person working on teen drop in nights even though up to 60 kids might show up.

"We don't have the funding to hire additional staff," said Peters. "And we don't have a strong base of volunteers. We found Jay's position is more policing the kids than being the mentor he wants to be."

The Side Door's annual budget is $250,000. "That includes everything from heat and utilities to the cost of running the programs to salaries," said Ryan.

Staff admit the problems are discouraging.

"It was hard to hold your head high when you know police will probably be coming that night to talk to you," said Peters. "Of course it's frustrating."

And it's not just the violence. It's the general lack of respect for the centre, a building equipped with everything a teenager could ask for -- wide screen television, video games, pool tables, computers.

"In a way, kids have been spoiled," said Peters. "Not to get down on the kids, but they haven't really learned to appreciate this."

So why wasn't violence as big of a problem at the old Side Door?

"I don't know how to explain why when we step into a building like this, there seems to be an uprise in violence, said Peters. "But I'm sure you've noticed, there's been a lot of teen violence in the community apart from the Side Door."

Neither want to leave the impression the Side Door is an awful place or that staff have thrown in the towel. That's not true, they said.

Most of the kids don't cause problems, they said. And once you spend time with the rougher kids and hear their stories, you see can see where their anger comes from.

"I think it should be said that all the kids are really good," said Bulckaert. "Even the really tough kids are really nice. It's only about 10 kids involved in those incidents."