Flier for Sunlight of the Spirit House’s planned “Pross House for Women” facility in Towamencin. (Credit: The Reporter/Sunlight of the Spirit House Facebook)
A planned sober living house in Towamencin has raised plenty of questions from neighbors, and township staff say they’re working to get the answers.
Residents of Pross Road turned out Wednesday night to ask questions about “Pross House for Women,” a sober living facility opening soon in Towamencin.
“Most of us, I think, are concerned about safety — of our children that play on the street, the amount of traffic that’s going to come on the street, and the security of our residences, is I think what most people here are really concerned about,” said Tom McClennen, a neighbor on Pross Road.
“What is going to happen when you have 14 people — and there already are 14 beds in that house — there’s going to be an unbelievable amount of traffic coming up and down Pross Road,” he said.
The facility is operated by Sunlight of the Spirit House, an Eagleville-based operator of sober living houses for individuals who have completed treatment and wish to live in a sober environment. Sunlight prompted similar feedback from residents when they sought approvals for a home on Montgomery Avenue in North Wales throughout 2015, that town’s zoning board denied their request for more than three residents in the home, prompting Sunlight to file a lawsuit against the town in 2016.
Sunlight has also worked with a similar Quakertown-based recovery foundation to develop standards for such facilities across the state, and Sunlight currently lists one home in Lansdale and two in Hatfield, whose staff said Thursday they’ve heard of no complaints or problems with those sites.
“Sunlight is doing well, we have been open for just about 10 years now. A lot of people have changed their lives after going through our houses,” said cofounder Matt Bartelt, who has not yet responded to specific questions about the Pross Road house as of press time Thursday.
Starting in early March, Sunlight has posted on their Facebook page about the pending opening of their ‘Pross House for Women’ located on the 1000 block of Pross Road, with posts in early March saying it would open April 2, photos of men moving furniture into the house the weekend before, and a post on April 1 stating “Not an April fools — just like that, we are open! SOS women’s house is accepting applications with immediate availability.”
A flier posted by Sunlight in late March says the Pross House for Women will offer “Sober living: $90 intake, $250 per week,” adding that “house activities include gardening, meditation, volunteer with equine rescue, hiking and nature walks,” and also offering “recovery support, job search assistance, near transportation and employment opportunities” alongside photos of the furnished house, prompting chatter on social media urging neighbors to turn out to have their say.
To start Wednesday night’s supervisors meeting, board Chairman Chuck Wilson read a prepared statement, saying that staff and the board were aware of the topic and had received “numerous calls and emails” about their concerns.
“Please note that more information is needed, and that the township has taken affirmative steps to obtain that information. We have a lot of information; staff’s working hard to get additional information on this,” he said.
“We’re looking at not just the zoning ordinance, but any applicable state or federal laws that may come into play here. So this is a little more complicated than your typical building or zoning code issue. So it’s going to take time. We ask for your patience. Once all of the information to make a determination is available, this will proceed as a regular zoning code compliance matter,” Wilson said. “Please give us your comments, but we won’t be able to respond.”
Several residents made public comments voicing concerns about the traffic, parking of those who would live there, how many people would occupy the home, and if that number would cause a fire or safety hazard inside the home. McClennen said he’s a direct neighbor to the house, and he and neighbors are concerned about the safety of residents, how many visitors and/or vehicles they would have, and “the craziness it’s going to bring to the street.”
“It’s been a very quiet neighborhood, where people have raised their kids. They pitch in, and help everybody. I think most of us, we’re concerned with what’s going to happen, and the ramifications of these people coming in,” he said.
“Is it permitted in a residential neighborhood? Because if it’s on Pross Road, it can be anywhere else in Towamencin.”
Other neighbors echoed similar concerns about traffic, parking, fire safety within the house, whether the business would need to be licensed and/or inspected by the township, and said they had heard at least some residents would move in as soon as Friday. Former supervisor Rich Marino added his own thoughts about the size of the house, and said he raised a family in a similar one.
“These were built in the mid-1950s. They’re three bedrooms, and a bath(room) and a half. The idea of putting 14 adults in that home is ridiculous,” Marino said.
“I had a family of six, with one bathroom, and one shower. That presented challenges. The idea of housing 14 adults, in a house that size, it’s really impractical, and not realistic. So I’d appreciate you doing what you can do to stop that,” he said.
Tracy Nisbett asked whether the proposed use complies with the township’s codebook: “The definition of family in the Towamencin code is: ‘no more than four unrelated individuals, residing under one residence,’ so I just want to put that into consideration as well: the number of people that are permitted in that house, if it is allowed to proceed.”
James Collins said he thought residents were concerned over “that kind of thing in neighborhoods, because it does not create stability,” and urged the residents to get and stay involved with more day-to-day local meetings beyond just local elections, Wilson answered that those residents can also give their contact info to the township’s code department to be kept informed on any new developments on this or any issue.
“All of us are very concerned about this. Township staff has been on this immediately,” Wilson said, adding that the code director and solicitor have “been working on this for many hours this week. It’s been a number of conversations — everything’s being focused on this.”
He then asked solicitor Bob Iannozzi if there are any imminent actions the township could take, and the attorney replied that “at this juncture, we still need some more information.”
Joe Meehan, chair of the town’s open space and parks board, then asked for specifics on the issue, prompting McClennen to summarize for the board and public.
“The home was sold to a young lady who wants to create a sober house, or otherwise known as a halfway house, for people that are dealing with alcohol,” McClennen said, before listing the neighborhood’s concerns.
“It’s not a benevolent reason: it’s a business. They’re going to be charging these residents. It’s not a 501C3 — she is finding ways to make money helping people, which is a nice thing to do, but the bottom line is, we’re concerned about our security, about the safety of our homes, and the children that play in the neighborhood,” McClennen said.
Towamencin’s supervisors next meet at 7 p.m. on April 24 at the township administration building, 1090 Troxel Road. For more information visit www.Towamencin.org.
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