Nowhere To Go: The Teen Takeover Dilemma
Michael Rivera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Hundreds of teens flooded Orange Park Mall on a warm July evening, hoping for connection, fun, and freedom. Within hours, the gathering was shut down, arrests were made, and Jacksonville’s youth were once again left asking: where are we supposed to go?
The Rise of Teen Reunions
Recently, teens in Jacksonville have orchestrated “Teen Reunions,” which have now been labeled “Teen Takeovers”, around Jacksonville to find things to do. JSO (Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office) shuts them down every time. Although they are actively enforcing the curfew, no one talks about how teens don’t have enough places to hang out locally anymore.
A City Built for Tourists, Not Teens
Jacksonville is advertised as a tourist city, where you can get away, rest, and relax. But for teens living here, it’s too much resting. Options are limited. Jacksonville is a place of bowling alleys, skating rinks, trampoline parks, and shopping centers. But when you live here your entire life, those things get old.
Crackdowns and Curfews
On July 5, in Clay County, an Instagram user (@chofetti) hosted a teen reunion at Orange Park Mall. This event brought hundreds of teens out of their houses. But eventually it was shut down by JSO; anyone under the age of 18 was dispersed from the premises. Some teens were arrested, while others ran while they waited for their parents to pick them up. A similar event happened on July 26 in downtown Jacksonville at Friendship Fountain. Unlike the Orange Park reunion, this was planned to be a “Fight Fest”, where some would come to host fights. This was also shut down by JSO. Although we cannot excuse the behavior of these teens, people must acknowledge the fact that teens need new places to go.
“Law enforcement, however, sees these gatherings through a different lens,” Sheriff T.K. Waters said during a District 3 town hall meeting. “I’m not trying to tell people how to parent, but if your kids are out beyond curfew, they may find themselves in trouble.”
Waters emphasized that while teens may view these events as harmless fun, JSO has witnessed serious incidents, including drug use, fighting, and pepper-spraying. Their response, he said, is aimed at maintaining public safety and preventing escalation.
“Make sure you’re at home if you’re underage before curfew because we are going to start arresting them,” Waters said.
Teen Voices: What It’s Really Like
When asking teens for a second opinion and a different perspective, the answers are similar.
“I believe, in some cases, the concerns of the adults were warranted,” junior Kadence Anderson said. “I don’t believe that the reaction they’re giving is okay. It’s not like we are trying to cause public mayhem or chaos in the streets. It’s the summer, and we are stuck inside trying to find something to do.”
Some teens have summer jobs or extracurriculars like football, band, and soccer. But during summer, teens also want to be able to get out of the house, take a break, and have a little fun.
“Most of the time we go to the Town Center, or we just do errands at Walmart since there is not much to do,” senior Vandel Gaboyau said. “To do something fun, you have to either drive 2 hours to Orlando to do anything fun or pay upwards of $50 to do something somewhat fun in Jax.”
What Teens Say They Need
As teens continue searching for places to belong, some are beginning to reflect on what previous generations had—and what’s now gone.
“Arcades, little game spots, we need places specifically for teens,” Anderson said. “I know back in the day, they said they used to have teen clubs and community centers. We don’t even have the Landing anymore.”
Over the years, they have closed places teens would go to hang out—places like the Jacksonville Landing, Adventure Landing, Regal Cinemas, etc. The list goes on. But now, when they choose to congregate, they are met with aggression from the police.
A Pattern of Exclusion
I, Jonathan Zander, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Our Teen Reunions have now been labeled “Teen Takeovers.” They are now enforcing a curfew: any teen caught outside after 11 p.m. without an adult will be taken into custody. With the enforcement of the 11 p.m. curfew, many hoped it would curb the gatherings and restore order, but teens argue it’s only pushing them further underground.
When asked if the curfew would help the situation, Gaboyau responded.
“Potentially, but likely no,” Gaboyau said. Teens already sneak out of the house late—a curfew will just cause teens to do more. They will still host events and hang out regardless of the curfew.”
This tension between teens seeking space and the systems that push them out isn’t unique to Jacksonville—it reflects a national pattern of exclusion.
“Young people represent a vital citizen group with legitimate rights to occupy and shape their public environments, yet they are often driven out of public places by adult users, restrictive bylaws, or hostile designs,” according to the youth engagement study Engaging Teenagers in Public Space.
Toward Understanding and Representation
There needs to be better communication between the teens and adults.
“It makes sense looking from the police’s perspective, but for teens it feels like an overreaction,” Gaboyau said.
The entire root of our problem is that there is not enough communication between the teens and those in charge.
“Overall, we need to have some understanding,” Anderson said. “We need people to empathize with us because everyone has been a teen at some point in their lives. What would help us out mainly would be representation for us where decisions are made.”