Maison des Jeunes forced to close:  The Maisons des Jeunes in Shawville has moved out of the Victoria Plaza and is now looking for a new location. The Maisons des Jeunes moved out of its location Friday due to budget restraints.

“We had a hard time recruiting competent social workers to work with teenagers because of the low funding we receive,” said Ariann Bouchard, director of the Maisons des Jeunes in Pontiac.

The organization receives funding from the provincial Ministry of Health and Social Services. The Maisons des Jeunes received $142,000 this year, which is divided between the organization’s four centres in Shawville, Rapides des Joachims, Fort Coulonge and Campbell’s Bay.

“With the money that we receive, we only have enough to pay social workers eight dollars per hour,” said Bouchard. “We can’t get quality social workers for that kind of pay.”

The other problem is finding space to relocate the centre to in Shawville.

“I have gone to several owners who have space to rent, but they said no when I told them who I represent,” said Bouchard.

Bouchard said that they have also approached Shawville council in previous years for funding but didn’t receive any. This year they did not approach Shawville council.

“We have in previous years come to Shawville and asked for funding,” said Bouchard, “but they didn’t have enough room for us in their budget.”

However, Shawville mayor Albert Armstrong said that the Maisons des Jeunes never has approached Shawville council for funding.

“I know they plan to relocate, but they have not approached council for funding,” said Armstrong.

Asked if he thought that without a youth centre, there might be more teenagers on the street.

“I don’t think that it will be a problem, it just means that the teens that went to the centre will have to find something else to do,” said Armstrong.

“I think that it’s important to have things for young people in the community, but they need to be coordinated properly.”

Due to the recent problems with vandalism and harassment by teenagers in Shawville, Bouchard said that not having a youth centre will contribute to the problem of teenagers on the streets.

“This does not help the problem,” said Bouchard. “We are going backward instead of forward.”

Small blaze at abandoned building — again:

Firefighters from the Shawville-Clarendon Fire Department were called just after 3 p.m. on May 29 to put out a small blaze that firefighters suspect was start by an ignited aerosol can.

“We think that it was started by some students from the high school, but we can’t say for sure,” said Wayne Bohart, the acting fire chief.

The old building, south of the high school just off Shaw Street, has caught fire every year for the past several years.

“We get sent there to put out a fire every year,” said firefighter Neil Sharpe, who was at the scene of the fire.

“It isn’t as bad as it used to be,” said Sharpe. “There used to be several fires set all around town in previous years.”

As the old building, a wooded frame made of barn board, was already run-down there was no property damage.