Summer Fun Unveiled

“Hoop it up” in a park. Bob for apples on the Green. Get trained by the NFL to be a football ref.

As the school year ended Wednesday, city officials offered those new alternatives to getting in trouble on the streets.

City officials gathered Wednesday to announce an array of activities for people of all ages this summer.

The focus was to keep kids safe and productive this summer, in the wake of two teen homicides and a predicted seasonal spike in violence.

Activities include:

• The July 1 Police Athletic League (PAL) camp, which the police department is looking to expand to serve 200 kids this year.

• The ​“Let It Fly” flag football tournament on July 19 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• Hoop It Up, a three-on-three basketball tournament, on July 25 to 27. The tournament starts in four neighborhood parks and culminates the 27th with a field day with family games on the Green and basketball on a closed-down section of Church Street, right outside City Hall.

The organizers are looking for charitable donors to help pay for the activity, part of the ongoing city effort to keep kids busy and engaged this summer. A ​“gold corporate sponsorship” costs $5,000. For information on all options, email Bartlett .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call him at (203) 946‑7585.

• Theatre of the Oppressed. Young people will get paid to write a play and perform it.

• Summer school. New Haven is offering more summer-school sites, and is mixing together students who have to be there and those who want to be there. Click here for more info and to sign up.

• Parks summer camp. For the first time, the city is pairing half-day summer school with after-school camps run by the parks department. More info here.

• Senior citizens can look forward to hair cuts, swimming at Career High School, and ​“dancing with the stars” at the Lighthouse Carousel.

• InfoNewHaven has the scoop on downtown festivals and other goings-on for all ages.

There’s no one website that has all of the information on the above activities. The New Haven Youth Map has some information for programs and activities. Anyone with questions about youth programming can call the city Youth Services Department at 203 – 946-7582.