ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) – The new Barack and Michelle Obama youth center on Genesee Street marks a new milestone for teenagers in Rochester. Mayor Malik Evans and other elected leaders joined young people in celebrating its ribbon cutting Thursday. It marks the end of a multi-year journey to bring the vision of a place where teens can thrive to reality. The new space is now home to The Center for Teen Empowerment, which hires and trains folks 14 to 19 years of age to be a part of change, the improvement of their lives and their community. "Young people need to feel invested in, our community needs to feel invested in," said Shanterra Mitchum, Teen Empowerment program director. "So, when we looked over here and saw these vacant lots that existed here, we said 'wow, I can only imagine how young people feel,' and you know what we did? We talked to young people, and they told us that it felt depressing. They asked, 'why couldn't our neighborhoods look like NOTA, the community of the arts.' So, we said 'ok, if we have an opportunity to build, we are going to build right here in this community that helped to raise us up.'" Thursday's opening celebration included tours, speeches from young people and recognition and gratitude for the people who helped to fund the center.