METHADONE CLINIC'S MOVE WORRIES SOME

LARGO -- The news spread quickly through High Point last week. Operation PAR is planning to move its methadone clinic to its offices in the neighborhood.

The nonprofit substance abuse treatment and mental health center has been operating in High Point for more than 10 years. A rather peaceful co-existence, many say.

But for some, the word "methadone" conjured up disturbing images of addicts loitering in front of the building on the same street as High Point Elementary School, hurting someone, perhaps a child, to get high.

One concerned resident called Operation PAR to find out what impact the clinic will have in the community. A guidance counselor at the school also called. Community leaders called each other last week to determine whether they should be worried and to wonder why their neighborhood seems to be the place where questionable projects like a proposed alternative high school come.

"When does it stop?" asked resident Debbie Birge.

Operation PAR officials say the neighborhood has nothing to worry about and is trying to coordinate meetings to allay resident concerns. Most of the people who will come to their methadone treatment clinic will be there in the mornings, and they won't linger. These are not criminals, Operation PAR says. Some are doctors, lawyers and business executives.

"Most people won't know we even exist," said Mary Lynn Ulrey, the facility's chief operating officer.

While used to treat heroin addicts, methadone is itself a narcotic. In the 1960s, doctors discovered it was a great way to counteract the craving for heroin, morphine and other narcotics. There are an estimated 7,000 Floridians being treated for their addictions with methadone. About 250 to 300 of those come to Operation PAR.

The doses are given once a day. Patients are assigned counselors, who give guidance and offer job assistance. The clinic also offers psychiatric services. The cost for treatment begins at $10 a day.

Operation PAR spends $50,000 a year to lease space for its methadone clinic in a building at 49th Street N and Ulmerton Road. The lease expires at the end of December. The nonprofit relies heavily on state funds for many of its programs. Anticipating severe budget cuts to social services, Operation PAR officials are looking for ways to cut costs. Moving the methadone treatment clinic to space in its High Point facility was seen as a way to save money.

Although Operation PAR has at least five offices in Pinellas County, officials said they chose the High Point location because their other sites were not a good fit.

Birge understands the need for such services.

"If these are adults trying to get off this drug," she says. "Then I'm for it."

But like many in the working-class, ethnically diverse neighborhood near the county jail and car dealerships on U.S. 19, Birge wonders: Why High Point? Last month, the Pinellas County School District announced plans to build an alternative high school for troubled teenagers near High Point Elementary School. The School Board had talked about putting the school in High Point four years ago, but told residents at the time they would find another location. However, other locations were incompatible, so officials focused again on High Point.

Not surprisingly, residents were angry about the plans. The School Board is hosting a meeting on Thursday to discuss the proposed school. School Board officials say High Point is an attractive location because the neighborhood is in the middle of Pinellas County.

The area is a smorgasbord of single-family homes, industrial buildings, the county jail and courthouse, mobile home parks, duplexes and Largo's Wastewater Reclamation Facility.

"They didn't zone this area right," groused Birge.

Operation PAR officials say they understand the fear. They've seen it before, they say, in Fort Myers, where the organization's plans for a clinic were met with vocal opposition. Most of the critics have now softened their resistance to the clinic, Operation PAR says.

"There is a fear of the unknown when in reality, there is nothing to be afraid of," said Gary Wenner, regional administrator of the agency's drug treatment services.

For now, High Point Elementary School principal Archie Miller is not worried about the clinic. Miller said the school has had a good relationship with Operation PAR, noting the educational puppet shows the organization puts on for his 640 students. His staff has talked to Operation PAR's staff, and Miller does not expect any problems.

"It didn't come across at all as something that would be harmful to our children," he said.

Ulrey insists High Point residents have nothing to worry about. Most patients who relapse, she said, will go to a place where they can find drugs -- not treatment.

"When people relapse, the last thing they want to do is come here," she said.