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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-6974 Staff AnalysisF7__� February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 FILE NO.: Z-6974 Name: City of Faith Prison Ministries Conditional Use Permit Location: 1401 S. Garfield Street Owner/Applicant: City of Faith Prison Ministries/ Terry Parker -Williams, Facility Director Proposal: A conditional use permit is requested for this existing correctional facility. Ordinance No. 17,409 passed March 4, 1997 required any existing correctional facilities to obtain a conditional use permit within 4 years of the effective date of the Ordinance. No changes or expansions are proposed. STAFF REPORT: City of Faith Community Correctional Center is located on the 0-3 zoned property at 1401 S. Garfield Street. At the time the facility opened in 1996, such uses were permitted "by -right" in the 0-3 district. In response to public concern, the Board of Directors, on March 4, 1997, passed Ordinance No. 17,409 defining correctional facilities and making correctional facilities a conditional use in any zoning district. That same ordinance also established the following separation, spacing and procedural requirements for correctional facilities: Separation, spacing, and procedural requirements for correctional facilities shall be determined by the planning commission so as not to adversely impact the neighborhood. Correctional facilities are subject to the following additional requirements: a. Before a conditional use permit for a correctional facility can be granted, the applicant shall clearly establish the following: February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 1. All property owners or persons operating a business within five hundred (500) feet of the property line of a proposed correctional facility have received notice by certified mail of the exact location of the property and its intended use; 2. This required notice was sent to each person before any contract for operation of the facility was granted, that this notice properly sets forth the exact procedure and time frame for the person notified to register objections with the appropriate governmental agency, and that proof of such notice is provided as required for conditional use permits; 3. The facility is not located within five hundred (500) feet of the property line of any school, any facility that operates programs for youth, or another correctional facility; 4. The applicant has conducted two (2) public hearings after having first advertised the meetings and location prominently not less than five (5) nor more than seven (7) days prior to each meeting; that such advertisement was prominently displayed and not a mere legal advertisement, in a newspaper with seven (7) days a week county -wide circulation; 5. Procedures are in place should the permit be granted that the chief of police shall be notified within one (1) hour that a resident of the facility has escaped or failed to return when required; 2 February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 6. Adequate security measures are in place to prevent any resident of the correctional facility from violating subsection (5) more than once in a thirty -day period. b. These requirements for correctional facilities are in addition to any other provisions required for a conditional use permit under this code. These requirements are mandatory and not directory. In the event of a conflict with the other provisions of the code, these requirements shall control. Substantial compliance is not sufficient. Failure to comply with these requirements shall be a basis to deny the permit. Within one hundred twenty (120) days of granting the permit, the permit may be rescinded upon presentation to the planning commission of clear and convincing evidence that the applicant failed to comply with subsections (1) through (4) above. Failure to comply with subsections (5) and (6) two (2) times within a ninety -day period, or the commission of a violent felony by a resident of the correctional facility, shall be a basis for determining that security is inadequate and such determination shall be a cause for immediate revocation of the permit. The planning commission shall establish procedures for presentation of such evidence and for placement of the matter on its agenda for public hearing. C. The terms "group care facility", "rooming or boarding", "community, welfare or health care", "establishment for a religious, charitable or philanthropic organization", "governmental or private recreational uses", and "rooming, lodging or boarding facilities", shall not include a correctional facility as a permitted use. d. Any correctional facility in operation on the effective date of this section shall be 3 ON - February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) required to come into section and obtain a within four (4) years of this section. FILE NO.: Z-6974 compliance with this conditional use permit of the effective date In conformance with subsection "d" above, City of Faith has initiated the process of coming into compliance with the new standards by applying for a conditional use permit. City of Faith has completed all required notification and newspaper advertisements, as outlined in the Ordinance. Public hearings were held on January 9, 2001 at the northwest police precinct and on January 29, 2001 at the Adult Community Center. In addition to the applicant, City Police Department and Planning Department staff, and Directors Adcock and Hinton, representatives of the Point O' Woods, Oak Forest, College Terrace, Broadmoor and University Park Neighborhoods. were present at the January 9, 2001 meeting. The general consensus expressed by the neighborhood residents was that, although they were concerned when the facility first opened, it had not turned out to be a problem. Results of the January 29, 2001 meeting will be forwarded to the Commission. The following information was provided by City of Faith describing the facility and its operations. Facility Description City of Faith is a non-profit organization founded by Mrs. Kathy Biedenharn in 1979. Ms. Biedenharn felt that the lack of money and marketable skills were the primary reasons why newly released prisoners failed to succeed outside the institution. As a result, City of Faith opened its first halfway house in 1983. The City of Faith operates three centers in the State of Louisiana and opened the City of Faith - Little Rock in 1996. The City of Faith - Little Rock Community Correctional Center is located at 1401 South Garfield Drive, Little Rock, Arkansas 72204. The center has a designed capacity for 97 residents, 77 male residents and 20 female residents. The center provides services to adult offenders who are 18 year of age or older. The average length of stay is six months. The center receives direct referrals from the United States 4 February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 Federal Courts and the Bureau of Prisons. The security level for all residents is classified as minimum -community. The center is located in a residential/business community and has easy access to public transportation and also permits eligible residents to drive personal vehicles under stringent guidelines. The center is a two-story brick structure that has ten thousand (10,000) square feet. The center was built in 1996 and has two handicap parking spaces and forty parking spaces for staff and residents. The first floor of the center has a lobby, control station, administrative offices, kitchen, dining area, staff restroom, U.A./medical supply closet, director's office, laundry room, handicapped restroom, handicapped room (capacity for two residents), and four bedrooms for female residents that have alarmed doors at both ends of the hallway. The second floor of the center houses male residents. There are 13 rooms on the second floor that house between three to seven residents. There is a storage room, laundry room and restrooms on the second floor. There is a day room on the second floor that has ample room to sit and has access to a television. All resident rooms have access to natural light. All common areas are personally decorated with plants, pictures and other memorabilia that add to the attractiveness and professionalism of the overall environment. The center is professionally landscaped and has several patios (covered and uncovered), barbecue area, three stationary picnic tables, several chairs and built-in sitting areas. The center has an outdoor (half -court) basketball area, and green -space for weight lifting. The center has a team of professionals that are divided into the following positions: 1 Executive Director 2 Deputy Executive Directors 1 Program Manager 1 Senior Case Manager 2 Case Managers 5 AW February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) 1 Chief of Security 6 Resident Security Staff 1 Home Confinement Coordinator FILE NO.: Z-6974 The mission and management philosophy of the City of Faith Community Correctional Center is to provide a versatile community-based alternative to conventional incarceration for those offenders referred to the center by contractual agreements. Since every offender in residential treatment ultimately returns to the community, the center incorporates a carefully monitored, progressive reintegration into society. The City of Faith emphasizes a risk reduction goal utilizing programs designed to assist offenders in becoming law- abiding, self-sufficient, contributing members of the community; thereby, changing an offenders attitude and consequently the probability of future criminal behavior. Thereby, behavioral changes achieved during a relatively short period of residential treatment may become enduring characteristics that enable the offender to reintegrate safely and productively into the community. The City of Faith offers a series of sentencing options more intrusive than probation, but less punitive than incarceration. Oversight, monitoring, substance abuse testing and counseling are provided. Thereby, maximizing compliance with treatment and court orders. The staff of the City of Faith makes a concerted effort to confront unacceptable, inappropriate behavior, and the failure to meet program requirements. The Community Correctional Center in tandem with alternative to incarceration, offers a sensible long-term solution to changing needs of the justice community. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval of a conditional use permit to allow City of Faith Community Correctional Center to continue to operate at 1401 S. Garfield Street. 6 February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (FEBRUARY 8, 2001) Terry Parker -Williams was present representing the application. There were several persons present both in opposition and in support of the item. Several letters of opposition had been received by staff and forwarded to the Commission. Staff presented the item and a recommendation of approval. Jim Lawson, Director of Planning and Development, introduced Captain W. W. Williams, of the Little Rock Police Department, and asked him to address allegations that crime had increased in the area since the City of Faith facility had opened. Captain Williams stated that crime had, in fact, decreased in the area and residents of the facility had never been involved in any crimes in the area. A report showing the crime rate statistics for 1996- 2000, covering an area of a 1-� mile radius of the City of Faith facility, was presented to the Commission. That report showed total offences dropping 40.97% during that time period. Director Joan Adcock, of the City of Little Rock Board of Directors, addressed the Commission. Director Adcock stated that she had been working with a Community Relations Board that had been established 4 years ago, after the facility opened. She stated City of Faith was the only Bureau of Prisons facility in the country to have such a board. Director Adcock described the workings of the Community Relations Board, including monthly meetings involving neighborhood association representatives, Little Rock Police Department personnel, Bureau of Prisons personnel and her. She stated it was her opinion that the facility did not create a problem. Terry Parker -Williams addressed the Commission. She reiterated that City of Faith was the only federal halfway house that was accountable to a community relations board. Ms. Parker -Williams commented that the concept had "caught the attention" of Federal Prison Bureau officials and was being modeled across the country. She stated that City of Faith, Little Rock had been recognized as the "best in the business." Ms. Parker -Williams stated she wanted to address three specific concerns raised by area residents at the January neighborhood meeting. She stated: 7 February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 1. City of Faith has had a 76% success rate compared to 26% at a maximum prison facility and 45% at a medium security facility. 2. The crime rate in the area surrounding City of Faith has decreased nearly 41% since the facility opened. 3. There has been no decrease in property values in the area since the facility opened. A letter from Mark Buerkle, a broker with the Rector Phillips Morse real estate company, was presented. In that letter, Mr. Buerkle stated that he saw no indication of any decline in property values. He stated sales and values had increased. David Savage, of 1618 S. Garfield Street, spoke in opposition to any non-residential development in the area. Sandra Brown, of the University Park Neighborhood Association, spoke in opposition. She stated the facility was allowed to develop the site improperly; that area residents did not have a say in the facility locating on the site and; area residents lived in fear because of the presence of the facility. Ms. Brown asked why some neighborhoods seemed to never have a voice in such matters. Anne Wasson, of 66 Lakeshore Drive, spoke in opposition. She voiced the same concerns raised by Ms. Brown. Jody Williams, of 1607 Charlotte, spoke in opposition. She stated she had not ever been made aware of any escapes from the facility. Ms. Williams stated she lived in fear and could not allow her children to play outside because of the facility. In response to a question from Commissioner Adcock, Ms. Parker -Williams stated there had been 9 escapes or walkaways from the facility since it had opened. Commissioner Adcock asked Ms. Parker -Williams to respond to Ms. Jody Williams statement that she had never been notified of an escape from the facility. Ms. Parker -Williams responded that the neighborhood association representative was always notified and that she depended on the 8 rl- :0 February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 "telephone -tree" to notify area residents. She stated she would certainly notify Ms. Williams. Commissioner Lowry noted that City of Faith was an existing facility and that he might feel differently if it was a new facility seeking to locate in the area. He asked if the Commission could approve the C.U.P. for only 1 year. Deputy City Attorney Steve Giles stated that City of Faith was seeking renewal of a four-year contract with the Federal Bureau of Prisons. He stated that approving the C.U.P. for only 1 year, when the facility had a 4 -year contract, might result in a breach of contract. Commissioner Berry agreed that approval for only 1 year was impractical. Chairman Downing asked what criteria there were for bringing the issue back to the Commission. Commissioner Berry responded that the Code established criteria for causing the item to have to return to the Commission. Jim Lawson added that the Commission could attach other conditions such as requiring Planning Commission review in 4 years or if a letter were received from the Little Rock Police Department stating that the facility had become a problem. Commissioner Allen asked if there were any means that the parties could come together to reach agreement on the issues. Sandra Brown responded that no agreement could be reached since the neighborhood did not want the facility at all. After a brief discussion, a motion was made to approve the Conditional Use Permit subject to the following conditions: L 1. The C.U.P. is approved for a period of 4 years, at which time a new application will have to be filed, with full notice as prescribed by the Code. 2. Review criteria are to be worked out by staff and the community relations board. These criteria are to establish cause for the C.U.P. to be reviewed by the Commission. E U�z February 8, 2001 ITEM NO.: 12 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-6974 3. If City of Faith's federal contract lapses, the C.U.P. is voided. The vote on the motion was 7 ayes, 2 noes and 2 absent. 10