Reply to Petition about residential treatment ctr by Greenwood Elementary

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]There is a similar facility in a SFH in my neighborhood that is directly adjacent to the Argyle Middle School field. Has been brought up in HOA meetings and have been told there's nothing we can do about it because these facilities are protected under county law. [/quote]

under federal law[/quote]

Actually, people in active treatment are not protected by federal law when it comes to such things. And medical treatment facilities don’t enjoy such protections either.

The county’s current interpretation of the county law is the issue.

And their decision to not amend the law to prevent this from happening again is baffling. [/quote]

Addiction is considered a disability, active treatment or not. It's not the county's interpretation, there is case law around this issue.  The county will not change zoning so that it violates a federal law. You really need to consult an attorney specializing in zoning and the Fair Housing Act.  [/quote]

The county can ban all group homes and treatment facilities from being a certain size in SFHs (hint: 8 is too many) AND prevent them from being located next to schools.

[b]When the law applies to everyone[/b]/all group homes then it isn’t discriminatory.

Plus, there is a difference when it comes to this facility. It’s not housing; it’s a medical treatment facility akin to a hospital. While FHA applies to sober living group homes, this facility is not a residence or housing.

Regardless, there is an easy way to fix this going forward: amend the zoning law and have it apply across the board. [/quote]

It has to apply to [b]everyone period[/b]. If you aren't permitting more then 8 people to live in an house (no matter the lot or home size), even if they are related, then perhaps it would apply. But you'll still get group homes from non-related people of 5-6 individuals.

Again you really need an attorney. This is going nowhere for Greenwood, and likely nowhere for future development and purchases of existing residences[/quote]

You can make it so NO group home can be located within a certain range of a school. That’s not discriminatory. But the county doesn’t want to change the law. Ask yourself why.

You can make it so you can’t have more than 4 unrelated people living in a SFH.

You can make it so all residential treatment facilities cannot be located in a residential neighborhood.

None of this would be discriminatory. [/quote]

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