City seeks to condemn group of sober-living homes in Rockford
Rockford has moved to condemn a half-dozen sober-living group homes that have sprung up across the city, saying they violate building codes.
The city posted notices of intent to condemn the houses last week saying the locations are considered "community-based housing," requiring automated fire sprinklers if there are more than four residents living there. They also took issue with areas of the house like basements, hallways and closets being used as bedrooms without proper exits in case of a fire.
"We're pinned as the bad guy here, but we're trying to protect the health and safety of the people in those houses," said city Legal Director Nicholas Meyer. "We don't want people living in closets. You shouldn't be living in a basement with no way to escape if there's a fire, or living above a garage — that's a safety issue."
Oxford House representatives have told Rockford officials they intend to appeal the condemnation notices to the Rockford Building Board of Appeals. No hearing date has been set.
An Oxford House representative declined to comment for this story.
It is unclear how many people were living in the homes when the condemnation notices were posted, Meyer said, but code violations were found during recent city inspections.
More: Rockford rejects expansion of group homes for recovering addicts
Oxford House: Residents are handicapped
City Council in October rejected a request by Maryland-based Oxford House to increase the number of residents living in single-family houses it had turned into sober living group homes.
The group homes are independently owned and "democratically operated" chapters of Oxford House. They are located at 5383 Pepper Drive, 6274 Brigantine Lane, 1234 National Ave., 5946 Weymouth Drive and 3522 Applewood Lane. Another is located on North Main Street in a commercial building, Rockford officials said.
In letters to the city, Oxford House said it provides group homes for men and women to help them recover from alcoholism and drug addiction. It said its residents are considered "handicapped" and are protected by the Federal Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Lawyers for Oxford House said the locations are "self-run, self-supported recovery homes," but not "abuse centers, halfway houses, shelters or rehabilitation care facilities." The group setting is meant to help people recover from drug and alcohol addiction and get their lives back on track.
Overdoses, domestic disturbances
Neighbors say there are often multiple police and ambulance calls each month to the locations where there have been instances of overdoses and domestic disturbances.
Quick turnover of residents at the Oxford Houses tend to worry neighbors who wonder who might be living next door one week to the next, said John Sweeney, an Applewood Lane resident and Winnebago County Board member who lives a stone's throw away from two Oxford Houses.
Sweeney said he was forced to call police around Halloween when his family heard yelling and screaming coming from one of the Oxford Houses on his block. He said he went into a neighbor's yard , looked over a fence and saw a "buck naked man" through a shattered sliding glass door swinging a bat inside one of the houses, smashing items and furniture.
Sweeney said Oxford House advertises more vacancies for each residence than the six that Rockford allows under its ordinances, and has put the residents inside the sober living houses in a bad position.
"Some of these people are clearly trying to turn their lives around, and I have total empathy for that," Sweeney said. "It's a tragedy if it negatively affects people who are trying to turn their life around, but the whole way Oxford House has come into the community and handled this has been totally wrong."
Rockford resident Mike Mapes, president of the Parkland Homeowners Association, said he also lives near two of the houses.
Mapes said there is little if any oversight over the facilities. Some might be well run, while others aren't.
"These are self-governed units," Mapes said. "They make their own rules and the people come and go. You have no idea who's living in them, or how many for that matter because that's not being recorded or reported."
Jeff Kolkey writes about government, economic development and other issues for the Rockford Register Star. He can be reached at (815) 987-1374, via email at jkolkey@rrstar.com and on Twitter @jeffkolkey.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford cited sober-living locations for code violations
