Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Lakeview Neighbors Quickly Recruit Manpower and Money to Fight Rehab Center

By Ariel Cheung | August 3, 2015 7:51am
 Neighbors circulated fliers and stickers opposing the Rosecrance Lakeview substance abuse counseling center and recovery residence proposed for 3701 N. Ashland Ave.
Neighbors circulated fliers and stickers opposing the Rosecrance Lakeview substance abuse counseling center and recovery residence proposed for 3701 N. Ashland Ave.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Ariel Cheung

SOUTHPORT — Neighbors against a proposed addiction recovery center have gathered 840 signatures and a prospective attorney who just won a similar battle in West Town.

They also raised more than $12,000 for their cause in just two weeks.

The Lakeview Action Committee, which formed in opposition to the Rosecrance Lakeview post-treatment recovery residence, is now seeking its own not-for-profit status as it continues to raise money for legal fees and to promote its cause.

Two tense meetings with Rosecrance this month failed to deliver the answers neighbors sought, so organizers want to move "away from the screaming" and into action, said Bridget Lohrius.

Last Tuesday at the Sheil Park Fieldhouse, 3505 N. Southport Ave., the neighbors laid out a three-month plan to canvass the neighborhood, while pressing Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) to oppose the plan at an October hearing before the Zoning Board of Appeals.

 Rosecrance Lakeview, a proposed substance abuse counseling center and recovery residence at 3701 N. Ashland Ave., has neighbors concerned about safety in a residential area.
Rosecrance Lakeview, a proposed substance abuse counseling center and recovery residence at 3701 N. Ashland Ave., has neighbors concerned about safety in a residential area.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Ariel Cheung

Tunney has remained neutral on the issue, pointing out that he does not have a hand in the board's decision.

Gionni Cutri, one of the committee's organizers, disagreed.

"In practice, if you call any zoning attorney and you ask them ... they will say the most important issue is whether the alderman supports your special-use application. If he supports it, it is very likely to go through," Cutri told neighbors.

Ariel Cheung explains why neighbors are concerned:

If Tunney opposes the project, neighbors foresee an outcome similar to the denial of a medical marijuana dispensary's application earlier this year. During the February zoning hearing on that matter, Tunney said he was "on the side of what I think are the majority of the residents."

"We're making it pretty tough for Tunney to support the permit, because he's so committed to improving the quality of life. And if he opposes the permit, then we win," said Bridget Lohrius.

The group wants to hire attorney Michael Franz to guide them through the legal process, after Franz fought against the presence of a for-profit sober living house across from his own home.

In late May, A Fresh Start was denied a special use permit for its West Town recovery home after a two-year battle with neighbors, Franz among them. Though he's actually a commercial litigator, Franz said he learned about the zoning processes, and he painted a grim picture of life across the street from the sober living home.

"We, the community, immediately noticed drug transactions going on. The little plastic baggies with a little white residue in them ... all of a sudden those appeared in our street when I was walking my dog. Never saw them before. We'd see cars come up, someone would leave the home, and a transaction would happen," Franz said. "And I didn't see what was transpiring, but we all know what that was."

Those complaints echoed Ald. Joe Moreno's (1st) about A Fresh Start, which he blamed for drug paraphernalia outside and residents "outside at all hours of the night."

"It's not about the mission, it's about the operation," Moreno said in February.

A Fresh Start was also accused of exploiting addicts and not providing any treatment while profiting from the enterprise.

Members of the Lakeview Action Committee told DNAinfo Chicago they feel the same about Rosecrance. They said if the proposal came from a different operator with more experience with residencies in urban settings, the negative reaction might have been less severe.

After the first meeting's huge crowd may have caught Tunney and Rosecrance officials off-guard, neighbors expected Rosecrance to show up at the July 20 meeting "prepared, buttoned up and ready to demonstrate their commitment to be a good neighbor, and they just didn't," Lohrius said.

For its part, Rosecrance has pledged to form an advisory committee to guide its launch in Lakeview if approved. CEO Philip Eaton also promised to abide by a Good Neighbor Agreement that would give neighbors some say in its security policies and operations.

Franz said he was very encouraged by the 30 people in attendance at Tuesday's meeting, putting the Lakeview Action Committee "already ahead of the game." But, he said, a large turnout at the October zoning meeting would be "crucial" to their success.

The committee will continue to raise money and support through its website, with another meeting in the works for August or September.

Contributing: Alisa Hauser

For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: