PIKESVILLE CLINIC IS FINED $10,800

Initial Operating Date Of Methadone Facility At Issue; June 18 Hearing Set

In the latest development in a two-month neighborhood battle, Baltimore
County code enforcement officials have assessed $10,800 in fines against
the owner of a new Pikesville methadone clinic who they say is operating
illegally.

An administrative hearing is set for June 18 for Helping Hand Inc. and its
owner, Joel Prell, who contends that his clinic at 116 Slade Ave. opened
one day before a county law banning such facilities in residential zones
took effect.

Neighbors claim Helping Hand and another clinic planned nearby are bad for
the community.

In March, the two clinics announced that they intended to open within a
half-mile of one another on the Reisterstown Road corridor, just north of
the city line.

One of the clinics, Success Through Acceptable Rehabilitative Treatment, or
START, was stopped from opening at 110 Reisterstown Road when Baltimore
County rescinded its permit March 21 because of insufficient parking.

At the same time, County Councilman Kevin Kamenetz introduced legislation
to ban such clinics within 750 feet of a residence. The bill was passed by
the council at their 7 p.m. meeting April 15 and signed into law by County
Executive C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger on April 16.

Prell says he opened his clinic on the afternoon of April 15 after
receiving county zoning and state Office of Health Care Quality approvals,
beating the new law by a day.

"We feel as though we were operating that day and that we were not in
violation of that bill," Prell said.

As for the fines, Prell said he expected them.

"I kind of knew it was going to happen," Prell said. "The word
'operational' is subject to interpretation."

Since opening the facility, Prell said he has been soliciting business from
other methadone clinics and United Way.

County officials contend that Prell received no clients before the law took
effect and therefore wasn't operating. Prell faces a fine of $200 for each
day the clinic, housed in an office building, remains open in alleged
violation of county law.

"We have some questions as to whether they were in operation," said
Kamenetz, a Pikesville-Randallstown Democrat. "I called the office that day
and got a voice mail saying that they were closed for the day."

Although he did not dispense methadone that day, Prell said, he spoke with
prospective clients. The clinic is open from 5:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
Mondays through Fridays and 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. Saturdays. Prell charges a one
time fee of $30 and $60 per week for treatment.

Methadone is a legal narcotic that is administered to recovering heroin
addicts to minimize their withdrawal symptoms.

Two years ago, a U.S. District judge ruled that a Baltimore County zoning
law restricting methadone clinic locations violated the Americans With
Disabilities Act because it regulated the clinics more strictly than other
treatment facilities.

Kamenetz says his legislation should avoid court scrutiny because it also
applies to facilities such as state-licensed drug and alcohol treatment
centers, and dialysis, outpatient surgical, endoscopy and birthing centers.

Chip Silverman, the former director of the state Drug Abuse Administration
and a consultant for START, said the new law has the same intent as the one
struck down by the courts.

"All this was about is keeping substance abuse treatment centers out of
Baltimore County and Pikesville," Silverman said.