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Neighbors opposed to WG recovery residence
Program would grow from six to 17 people in house
By Moryt Milo
Willow Glen residents living on Kilo and Foxworthy avenues were surprised when they learned one of the homes in their neighborhood housed a rehabilitation program for adults participating in a drug and alcohol recovery program.
According to the city of San Jose, the programs are allowed to have six residents and two staff without notifying neighbors because they are considered a "single housekeeping unit." Programs that meet these guidelines are not required to obtain a business permit or county certification.
Deputy District Attorney Julianne Sylva, who is works with drug and alcohol certification programs, said, "It's not unusual that the neighbors don't know about it." The Willow Glen "recovery residence" on Kilo Avenue is county certified and part of the Rainbow Recovery group of transitional-living properties located throughout the San Jose area. The programs house women and children only. They are not women's shelters. The residents are "attempting to address their alcohol or drug addiction and get back with their kids," Sylva said.
Residents expressed concerns about the house when its owner asked the city for permission to increase the number of tenants beyond the allowable limit.
Andrew Kubica, landlord and assistant director of the Rainbow Recovery program, said he notified four neighbors at the end of August that the program was applying to increase its tenants from six to 17 residents and two staff members.
The word immediately spread down the eastside of Kilo and Foxworthy, and some residents claimed Kubica could have been a better neighbor by notifying more residents on the street.
Bruce Brunger, one of the neighbors spearheading the opposition, put together a list of concerns and objections, which has been submitted to the city of San Jose Department of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement. The group is requesting a public hearing.
Included in their list of concerns was a decrease in property values, maintaining pride of ownership, high turnover of occupants, concerns about the residents' backgrounds and community safety.
Jose Vega, another concerned neighbor, said, "It's OK with the people who are there now. There is some concern about the children being under-supervised. But when you put in 17 people, you are stacking the odds up against yourself."
Kubica said he tried several times to meet with the neighbors to explain the program but they didn't return his calls until just recently. Kubica also states that he followed all city requirements and was concerned about the program's level of exposure. "The whole concept [behind the program] is we are protecting people's privacy."
According to Sylva, the Rainbow Recovery program works with women coming through dependency court. The women are accused of neglect or child abuse, resulting from either alcohol, drug addiction or physical abuse.
Their children have been taken away and are wards of the court. The program reunites mothers and children. Rainbow Recovery contracts with the county to provide beds for the women, and due to the program's sensitive nature, Kubica says they try to keep a low profile.
David Byers, a criminal investigator with the Santa Clara District Attorney's Office, is responsible for investigating the site and fielding complaints and said, "[Rainbow Recovery] decided it didn't want sex offenders, didn't want arsonists or people with the background of felony violence in their homes or on their staff." He adds that part of the agreement between the district attorney's office and Rainbow Recovery was to run criminal background checks on the individuals entering the program. If they fall into any one of those categories, they cannot enter the program.
Byers points out that as a county-certified program, Rainbow Recovery has stricter guidelines than a state-licensed program. For instance, the D.A.'s office is required to check up on the home a minimum of two times a year; if the program was state licensed, the requirement would drop to once every two years.
The neighbors acknowledge the importance of protecting the identity of the current residents. "We don't expect them to stop the program," Brunger said.
"But we don't want it to grow, and that's what we are trying to fight."
Sylva sympathizes with the neighborhood and understands the difficulties involved in balancing the issues. On one side, there are the rights of the people coming through the program, while on the other side, local residents living next to these programs are weary, he explained.
Brunger spoke to Chris Hemmingway, aide to City Councilman John Diquisto, and was told that to be effective he needed to challenge the request early. Hemmingway confirmed he had spoken with the neighbors saying, "We are happy to work with them on the process."
Ashley Fijman, another concerned neighbor, spoke with Diquisto directly and said, "I felt that [Diquisto] was not supporting the [idea of expansion]."
If the program's expansion is approved, Kubica says the increase will be gradual. The program is requesting the allowable maximum so it doesn't have to go back to the city at a later date and reapply. Kubica indicated that the program has revised its numbers downward to 16 from 17 people.
However, in order to be granted approval, Rainbow Recovery's request must also follow a strict square-footage guideline in the application process. According to Byers, the project manager at Rainbow Recovery must hire a third-party architect who will provide a detailed drawing that outlines the square footage measurements in the house to the department of planning.
Vega said he was not pleased that the neighborhood's request for a public hearing was interpreted as harassment by the managers of the program. "I'm just trying to protect my rights," he said. Vega added that he understood that "these people are down on their luck," but he does not want to become the neighborhood police when he notices children riding their bikes late at night without helmets or shoes.
Sylva explains that it is still a transitional period for these women and wants the neighbors to know that they are subject to rigorous testing several times a week; they are required to take special parenting classes; and some participate in anger management classes and are working toward the development of basic life skills.
"The actual neighbors in the community wouldn't be as well-supervised as these ladies," Brunger said Brunger. "In your lifetime you probably will never have a neighbor with as much to lose as these women. They can lose their kids, so a lot is on the line."
The neighbors say they understand and accept the situation.
Fijman said, "I was the last one out and told them I'm all for outreach and wanting to be a good neighbor. But the bottom line is we are not happy with the 17 people and will fight it."
For more information or if you have questions about the program, call the Santa Clara District Attorney Group Home Hotline at 800.447.1161.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
