Town Passes 45-Day Moratorium On Unlicensed Group Homes; Now Faces Fair Housing Lawsuit Threat By 'Sober Living' Facilities Operator

In San Rafael, California, the San Rafael Patch reports:

• City council members unanimously approved a 45-day moratorium on all unlicensed group homes despite threats of a legal challenge from an attorney representing two sober living facilities.

• Since the beginning of February, residents in the Forbes and Gerstle Park neighborhoods have been concerned about possible parking problems and traffic congestion caused by two sober living facilities on 1 Culloden Park Rd. and 201 Marin St. Both of these facilities provide no treatment for the recovering alcoholics or addicts who would be living there and could house between seven and 15 people, although it is unclear how many people are currently living in these locations.

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• Attorney Matthew Gorman, representing the operators of both sober houses, wrote a letter to the city a few hours before the March 7 city council meeting saying a moratorium would be “highly problematic and would expose the city to legal challenges if the city council proceeds.” Instead, he volunteered his cooperation with the city to find a solution.On top of being vague and rushed, the moratorium violates privacy laws, equal protection rights, uniform housing code, zoning regulations and the Federal Fair Housing Act, Gorman said.

• “Both the Federal Act and the State Act (of the Fair Housing Act) treat persons recovering from drug and alcohol addictions as individuals with a disability,” Gorman said. Discrimination in housing based on this disability is prohibited.

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• Cities all over the state and country are struggling with how to regulate sober living facilities. Garner, N.C., Columbus, Ind. and Dalton Township, Mich. have all been sued by the United States Department of Justice for attempts at regulation, according to [City Attorney Rob] Epstein.(1) Los Angeles is currently revising its zoning to address the problem and West Hollywood was recently involved in a lawsuit involving rent control and clean and sober living homes.

For more, see Moratorium on Group Homes Violates Fair Housing Act, Lawyer Says (City may face "legal challenges" after unanimously approving a moratorium on all group homes).

(1) For the U.S. Department of Justice press releases on these legal actions, see:

• Justice Department Settles Fair Housing Lawsuit Against Town of Garner, North Carolina (Garner pays $114,000 to settle Fair Housing lawsuit brought by Justice Department),
• Justice Department Resolves Housing Discrimination Lawsuit with the City of Columbus, Indiana (Columbus pays $24,000 to settle Fair Housing lawsuit brought by Justice Department),
• Justice Department Settles Housing Discrimination Lawsuit Against Dalton Township, Michigan (Dalton Township pays $62,500 to settle Fair Housing lawsuit brought by Justice Department).