Stafford delays vote on addiction-recovery center

Addiction-recovery program still needs county approval

Date published: 5/11/2008

By KAFIA HOSH

Stafford County officials have deferred a request for a Poplar Road farm to house a drug- and alcohol-recovery program.

Teen Challenge of Fredericksburg Inc. applied for a conditional-use permit to run the facility on 8.4 acres zoned for agricultural use.

The farm would house men ages 18 to 25 who are recovering from drug and alcohol addiction.

As many as 17 residents, including Teen Challenge staff, would live in a five-bedroom home with plush couches and hardwood floors. A separate, smaller home would house the group's administrative offices.

Teen Challenge is a nonprofit, faith-based recovery program. Participants are not placed in the facility as a result of court order or while on parole. Sex offenders and violent offenders are not permitted, and participants do not have drugs in their systems during their stay.

Aquia District Supervisor Paul Milde supported the program.

"I really don't believe that there's an inherent threat to the neighbors," he said. "There is no reason to delay this."

But other supervisors wanted to postpone their decision to have more time to research federal statutes that regulate equitable housing and land use. They voted unanimously to delay action on the request for 30 days.

"Those issues clearly pose significant problems to the county if we don't take those into serious account," said George Washington District Supervisor Harry Crisp.

In December, the Planning Commission recommended denial of the application.

Planning and Zoning Department staff recommended deferral to get additional information from the applicant. However, the staff concluded that the location and the intensity of the use would be out of character for the mostly agricultural area. The county's land-use plan recommends the area should be limited to agricultural use for the purpose of protecting farms and open space from the negative impacts of residential development.

"The use would not be in harmony with by-right uses in the zoning district," said Jeff Harvey, director of planning and zoning.

The property is surrounded mostly by single-family homes on large tracts. The nearest residence is 450 feet south.

Michael Coughlin, a land-use attorney representing Teen Challenge, said the conditional-use permit is a reasonable request under the Fair Housing Act.

Date published: 5/11/2008

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