CLINIC RULES DON'T PASS MUSTER

Committee Feels Ordinance On Methadone Treatment Facilities Needs More Work

Knox County wants to extend a moratorium on methadone treatment
facilities while it develops an ordinance on the matter.

The County Commission is expected to approve a four-month extension of
the ban on new clinics while an ordinance is drawn-up to meet the
concerns of some of the commissioners.

If the commission approves the ordinance, the sometimes-controversial
clinics would be subject to legislative oversight.

The commission slapped a six-month ban on methadone clinics last June
after a nonresidential clinic was proposed on Chapman Highway in South
Knox County.

Residents complained, and South Knox County Commissioners Howard
Pinkston and Larry Clark said a clinic was not consistent with the
zoning of the area, which included residential neighborhoods.

It was discovered at the time that there was confusion as to whether
methadone clinics are permissible under office and medical zoning.

The issue was then sent to the Metropolitan Planning Commission to
draw up an ordinance specifically dealing with methadone clinics,
where heroin addition is treated among other things.

Currently, the county has just one methadone clinic, according to the
state Department of Health, which licenses such facilities.

The ordinance was drawn up and presented to the commission, but a
commission committee recommended last week that it be sent back to MPC
for revision and tightening.

Commission Chairman David Collins said if that recommendation is
approved at today's commission meeting, the ordinance will go back to
the MPC for more work.

With that potential approval, a four-month extension on the moratorium
would be in effect to give MPC more time to work on the ordinance.

Moyers said in current form, the ordinance allows methadone treatment
facilities in four zones - office park, office, medical and related
services, highway commercial and business and technology park.

He said some commissioners felt that was too many zones.

The current proposal also adds various stipulations, such as a clinic
cannot be within 500 feet of a school, church or day-care facility or
any business that sells alcoholic beverages.

It also requires what is known as "use on review," meaning each
application is specifically examined by all board members of the MPC.

"Those sorts of restrictions aren't on normal clinics," commission
Chairman Collins said.