Lakeway denies permit for Recovery Ways rehab site

"Utah-based Recovery Ways intends to bring in addicts and mental health patients from all over the country in order to make a profit by exploiting Lakeway's extraordinary amenities and quality of life," Lakeway resident Bob Schooler said.

But Recovery Ways consultant Cindy Morphew said much of the anger aimed at Recovery Ways was misdirected. Addiction rehab facilities like Recovery Ways help reintegrate addicts back into society and are good for the greater community, she said.

Research indicates that about 40 percent of Recovery Ways' clients could come from the Lakeway area, she said.

"On the one hand, Lakeway can be very supportive and very caring," she said. "Unfortunately, that's not what has been exhibited by the vocal minority."

Lakeway resident Jeff Hayes said he was surprised at how angry residents became over Recovery Ways. He said his experience in Lakeway led him to think that Lakeway residents are generally nice and caring.

"I found it hard to stomach, not so much their opinions but how they addressed them," he said. "I was just pretty much stunned that they were so negative."

In response to Morphew, council members said they were offended at being labeled uncaring.

"I know from being here for 13 years that we are a very, very caring community, and we care especially about the most vulnerable among us, and that is our older citizens and our younger citizens," Councilman Dennis Wallace said. "We do a lot for charity, and we do a lot for people outside this community, so I really resent being characterized as a very closed, narrow-minded community."

History

Recovery Ways had invested about $500,000 into its initial location near Lakeway Elementary School before its site permit was rescinded, Morphew said.

Morphew said after the permit was rescinded, Recovery Ways was still willing to work with the city, accept the loss of that investment and move forward. She said that a lawsuit against the city was off the table as Recovery Ways still wanted to work with the city.

Morphew said she thought that the Lakeway Regional Medical Center campus could be a good fit for the two-story facility. Plans for the campus surrounding the LRMC include a hotel, retail area, medical office buildings and an independent living facility.

But Lakeway residents said the LRMC campus would be a bad fit for Recovery Ways because it would be near Lake Travis Middle and High schools, as well as a hotel and senior living facility on the medical campus. Lakeway resident Leslee Smithwick said she thought potential hotel guests would be scared off by the hotel's proximity to Recovery Ways.

"How many people need to be at risk by the location of Recovery Ways before you realize that Lakeway is not an optimal place for a drug rehab facility?" she said.

After being denied a permit to operate on the LRMC campus, Morphew said she could no longer say that a lawsuit against the city was off the table.

Open records request

Recovery Ways in April filed an open records request against city leaders requiring them to turn over any communication they had about the rehab facility.

When the public outrage started against Recovery Ways, most council members and city staff said they did not know that an addiction rehab facility was approved to be built within a mile of Lakeway Elementary School. Permits for Recovery Ways did not require City Council approval at the time because it qualified as a convalescent facility.

But Morphew disputes the claim that city officials did not know about Recovery Ways.

"There were members of this city saying they had no idea," she said. "There were members of this city who said we were fraudulent in our application, and the only way we can get that information out that that is absolutely and patently untrue is [with an open records request]."

For his part, Mayor Dave DeOme said Recovery Ways filing an open records request against the city showed a lack of trust between the two parties.

"I just don't trust them," he said.

Special-use permit

In response to the uproar over Recovery Ways, in March Lakeway revised its zoning code to require almost all businesses looking to build and operate near a school or neighborhood receive a special-use permit. A special-use permit requires a public hearing and approval from City Council and the Zoning and Planning Commission.

To obtain a special-use permit, an applicant must be compatible and not negatively affect surrounding businesses or residential areas, create a nuisance to its neighbors or significantly increase traffic.

Recovery Ways pledged to the city that the facility would meet the criteria and not operate as a detox facility, treat sexual offenders, admit people from a group home or provide any on-site outpatient service. Recovery Ways also pledged it would drug test its staff and clients.

However, Assistant City Manager Chessie Blanchard-Zimmerman said it would be impossible for the city to verify whether Recovery Ways was following its pledges.

"While the proposed use is consistent with many of the uses proposed in the Lakeway Medical Village, the voluntary conditions offered by the applicants, in staff's opinion, is not sufficient to ensure its compatibility with the adjacent schooling use and the surrounding community over time," she said.