METHADONE CLINIC LAWYER RESPONDS

Opponents Waited Too Long To Object, He Said In Response To A Lawsuit Filed
Against The Clinic

Northwest Roanoke residents opposed to a methadone clinic waited too long
to raise their objections, an attorney for the clinic says in a response to
a lawsuit that seeks to shut down the drug treatment center.

The lawsuit, filed in January just as the clinic began to treat its first
patients, took issue with the way the clinic obtained a business license
from the city and met other zoning requirements in 2003 for its site at
3208 Hershberger Road.

But in a response filed this week in Roanoke Circuit Court, attorney John
Walker noted that such issues must be addressed in an appeal to the Board
of Zoning Appeals within 30 days of the disputed action.

Once the time limit passes, the actions are "final and unappealable,"
Walker's response stated.

Fearing that the Roanoke Treatment Center will bring crime and traffic
congestion to their neighborhood, opponents also claimed in the lawsuit
that its mere presence amounts to a public nuisance.

But at least so far, Roanoke police and neighbors have not been able to
cite any problems associated with the clinic.

"To establish a public nuisance in Virginia, you have a real high standard
that has to be based not on speculation but on facts," Walker said.

Michael Bragg, an Abingdon attorney who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the
residents, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.