The new management behind a youth center in Isla Vista intends not only to pick up where the old regime left off, but to go even further in providing new services for the community’s youth.

Zona Seca, Inc. managed the I.V. Teen Center until July of this year, when financial concerns led to the end of its involvement. The YMCA won a bid to take over its management and created a new community outreach program to help the center run more efficiently and eliminate previous problems, such as leaky roofs, idle teens and irregular volunteering. The new staff hopes to improve existing tutorial, recreational, leadership and cultural programs, as well as adding health, drug and alcohol education.

The center accommodates about 20 teens daily, and Community Outreach Programs Director Marya Torrez said that approximately 65 teens have used it in the past month. Nearly all the teens that use the center are Latino residents of I.V., Torrez said, although some are accompanied by friends from Goleta. At the center, teens receive tutoring, play sports at adjacent Estero Park and participate in cultural activities, such as creating altars for the upcoming D