Over neighborhood objections, a group home in the Hill has gained approval to expand the number of beds it offers to adolescent boys in trouble with the law.
The decision came in a meeting of the Board of Zoning Appeals last week.
It concerns the St. Francis Home for Children at 672 Congress Ave. The home serves as a short-term haven for adolescent boys sent there by the courts as they grapple with behavioral, mental health, and drug abuse problems.
Allan Appel Photo
The custodial home’s executive director, Paula Moody (pictured with lawyer Anthony Avallone), asked the board for a special exception to permit the six-bed facility to add two beds. That would accommodate a new state-funded program that will also serve a slightly older population, up to 18 years old. It would also permit a greater length of stay, from the current 14 – 30 days to from one to three months.
“St. Francis Home for children has been excellent. They have stabilized the neighborhood,” said local resident and businessman Samuel Foster. He also testified that the expansion has the support of Alderman Andrea Jackson-Brooks, in whose ward the home is located.
Avallone said that because of the new funding stream and its requirements, the home would not be able to function without the zoning exception.
The expansion did not go uncontested. Ohan Karagozian (pictured), vice-president of the Hill North Community Management Team, rose to oppose it. He said the St. Francis Home had not consulted the management team. He also charged that since 2006, when the six-bed facility was approved, the home has been in violation of zoning ordinances in not providing either sufficient interior play space for the boys or the required outdoor space.
“Being aware of it [and not correcting the condition] is inexcusable,” he said.
Karagozian added, “This location is within a stone’s throw from John C. Daniels [School], and close to a liquor store, and the APT Foundation. Youth [from St. Francis] will be exposed to all this. We take exception and are not amenable to the BZA moving forward.”
The commissioners absorbed some of Karagozian’s remarks yet landed on the side of Moody. They voted unanimously to approve the special exception, with conditions: that a revised and accurate floor plan of the interior space be submitted and approved; that 800 square feet of currently paved space be converted into a grassy recreation area for the boys; and that there be zoning “sign-offs” on the new parking and site plan before a certificate of occupancy is awarded.