The Lakewood Youth Council on Monday summarized a year of community service and civic programming and urged the City Council to help address transportation barriers that limit teen participation.

Elijah Stahana, chair of the youth council, told the council the group led community events in 2025 including the MLK celebration and a youth empowerment summit, and helped pilot the Youth Academy. "We started the year by volunteering at several city events," Stahana said, adding the council's priorities were community service, leadership and teamwork.

Natalie (Nani) Lopez, communications manager for the youth council, said the group expanded partnerships with organizations such as Clover Park Technical College, the Lakewood Multicultural Annual Gala, and local student leadership groups. Zoe Clifford, a youth council secretary, presented the council's 2026 goals: more volunteer events, school outreach, and giving youth a seat at advisory boards.

During a follow-up discussion, Councilmember Brandcenter asked whether transportation remained a priority for the youth council. Stahana and other youth members said it did: while Pierce Transit offers a free-fare program, many teens avoid buses because of safety concerns and uncertainty about routes. "A lot of them did not raise their hands because of affordability, because they knew that it was free. The issue was...they weren't sure about their safety on public transit," Stahana said.

Council members encouraged closer coordination with Pierce Transit and the Clover Park School District for event-specific transport, and suggested youth leaders provide detailed, advance logistics that staff and the district could act on. The council also praised the youth council's new attendance policies: short-term excused and unexcused absence limits and a requirement to report absences 24 hours in advance.

The mayor and council members concluded by urging the youth council to continue outreach and to bring specific transportation proposals to staff for possible district or agency partnership. The presentation closed with council members thanking the youth council for their year of work and inviting continued updates.

The youth council presentation and Q&A took place during the study-session portion of the Nov. 10 meeting; no formal council action was taken.