RECOVERY HOUSE 'BURIED' UNTIL AFTER ELECTIONS

A controversial housing project for recovering addicts will most
likely be kept under wraps until after November's city council elections.

Turning Point Recovery Society applied to the city last year for a
40-bed complex on Ash Street to help with a burgeoning waiting list
for addicts trying to reform.

But it provoked residential derision when it was made public and the
plan has since been gathering dust in the city's planning department.

Society executive director, Brenda Plant, intends to resurrect talks
with the city in the next two weeks.

However, two Richmond councillors, who've been involved on either
side of the debate, agree the proposal may be too sensitive for an
election campaign issue. "Yes, it's a possibility this could be
brushed away until after the elections," admitted Coun. Linda Barnes,
a supporter of the project.

"Personally, I'd like it to be dealt with after the election as it
might give more time for the right information to come out.

"We have a very unfortunate situation in that the community is being
confused by some of the information that's out there."

Barnes added that much of the information about what kind of people
will be housed in the facility is misleading.

Fellow councillor, Harold Steves, a project opponent on zoning and
density grounds, says he'd be "very surprised" if the subject
surfaces before the elections.

"I don't think there's a hope of (the project) passing right now," Steves said.

"Maybe (Turning Point) think they have some support right now or
maybe they'll try and make an election issue out of it. I doubt it though."

Steves admitted, however, that Turning Point's proposal would be the
number one election issue if it was raised in a candidate's campaign.

"The environment should be top of the list as far as I'm concerned," he said.

Steves reiterated his stance, as chair of city council's planning
committee, that the maximum for this kind of facility is 10 beds, and
not the 40 requested by Turning Point.

Brenda Plant, Turning Point executive director, revealed the city
still has on file the original 40-bed application, despite an offer
to reduce the proposal to 32 beds to address neighbourhood concerns.

"There was no point in formally submitting the revised application
for 32 as we knew it would not be supported," she said. "We had been
discussing possible revisions to our proposals but we've had no
contact with the city for a few months.

"We're still trying to get a design that everyone will be happy with
and I anticipate we'll be getting back into formal discussions with
the city in the couple of weeks."

There are few resources for recovering addicts and alcoholics in
Richmond, according to the Turning Point Society, which runs a
nine-bed group home for men in recovery on Odlin Road.

There is an average wait list of three to five months for that
facility, and there is nothing in Richmond for women or youth.

Turning Point's $6.2-million expansion plan calls for three new
buildings on Ash Street. It includes two two-storey homes to be used
as supportive housing -- one for men and one for women. Clients would
typically stay up to three months.

Another 20-bed "second-stage" apartment-style housing centre would
offer longer-term support. Clients would stay for up to a year in
self-contained studio apartments. They would be required to work or
be in school and attend regular 12 Step meetings. There would be a
live-in centre manager.

Neighbours of the proposed expansion worry about having recovering
addicts living next door to them, and just one block from an elementary school.