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Alameda County's Juvenile Justice Center provides integrated services for youth in a healing environment with natural light, fresh air, and inspiring art.

Juvenile Justice Center

When the Juvenile Justice Center opened in 2007, Alameda County's at-risk youth could for the first time receive integrated health, education, legal, and correctional services in one location. The Center provides a healing environment with natural light, fresh air, and inspiring art. Operating the Center in a sustainable way helps care for the youth's future by preserving California's water and energy resources, fighting climate change, and saving taxpayer dollars.

Green Jobs

During construction, Alameda County hired youth from the detention system, local schools, and minority- and women-owned businesses to foster small businesses and promote green jobs. In partnership with the business community, the County made an investment in California's green economy that will pay back many times over.

Green Building Features

The Juvenile Justice Center is the first U.S. Green Building Council LEED® Gold rated facility of its kind. Green features include:

  • Energy efficiency—A design that maximizes natural light and energy
  • Renewable Energy—An 850 kW rooftop solar panel that provides over 60% of the building's energy demands
  • Water-wise landscaping that reduces site water consumption by more than 50% and saves over 5 million gallons of water annually
  • Waterless urinals and water-efficient plumbing fixtures that reduce water consumption by about 40% and save more than 2 million gallons of water annually
  • A full green cleaning program including green cleaners, microfiber cloths and mops, and entryway matting
  • Recycling of 93% of construction waste
  • Easily accessible recycling for building occupants and visitors
  • Environmentally preferable carpet, paint, and furniture

Youth Programs

Art at JJC

  • 17 site-specific permanent artworks throughout the building and 45 wall-mounted artworks created by Alameda County artists to provide inspiration to youth.
  • Ongoing arts education for youth by professional teaching artists
  • The Minerva Quilts project focused on Minerva's qualities of courage, strength, and wisdom and encourages teens to think about these traits in themselves. Teenage girls residing at the Juvenile Justice Center designed their own quilts. Learn more...

New Beginnings Program

The New Beginnings Program is an innovative Alameda County Program that prepares youth for the future through education and job skills development. The Fresh Start Café, a public-private partnership with Aramark Food Services, is one of the New Beginnings Program's initiatives. Through supervised work at the café, youth referred by the Probation Department have the opportunity to gain valuable work experience at the Juvenile Justice Center. Since May 2008, youth at the Juvenile Justice Center have served over 200 customers per day. The youth receive an hourly wage, and those who complete the internship receive a food handling certification and course credits towards high school graduation.

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