DALLAS A South Oak Cliff neighborhood is outraged that a transitional home has moved into their cul de sac.
Residents said they never imagined when they purchased their homes they would be living next door to recovering alcoholics and former substance abusers who often need a place to stay while trying to return to a normal life.
We don t know these gentlemen, and we don't even know who's running it, said neighbor Franklin Mitchell. We would like to be informed before any type of situation arises like this in our neighborhood.
Mitchell has four children, and says he feels uneasy about the transitional home being in the neighborhood. He signed a petition to try to get it removed.
But the home at 6805 Hot Springs Court is still on the block in this kid-friendly neighborhood.
What concerns me is, I see several men out at all hours of the night and I don't really know what's going on over there, said Dawn Miller, who has two daughters. She said one them overhead a man saying he had just gotten out of jail.
Miller said as a mom she is not judging the men, but is concerned that she doesn t know the backgrounds of the six people who have taken up temporary residence in her neighborhood.
One of the men paying rent at the house, who gave his name only as Russ, tried to describe it. One where people come out of places and need places to stay until they get their lives together, he said.
Russ said he is dealing with depression and needed a place to stay. So does he feel he has a right to be in this neighborhood?
We pay like everybody else does, he said.
Benita Dabney, another neighbor, begs to differ. We have children. We have lives here. We don't want them here, she said. Why can t they go someplace else?
Dallas City Council member Tennell Atkins says the property owner, JMM Enterprises LLC, is leasing it. It's the lessor, Etho Pugh, who turned it into a transitional home to help people who are down on their luck.
Atkins says residents called him for help, but he said the city's hands are tied on this issue. The only thing the City of Dallas can do is look at code violations and send police out there, he said.
Dallas city code permits as many as five people with different surnames to live in the same home, as long as they share a kitchen. That number can increase to eight because of a provision in the Americans with Disabilities Act.
ADA is applicable because substance abuse is considered a disability.
As a taxpaying homeowner, I think I have rights, too, and I think I bought this neighborhood so my property value can be improved, said Patricia Wright, who has lived there for nearly a decade. I'm pretty sure if I put my house up for sale today who's going to buy it?
Wright said she watched a van drop off six different men at the home in question, making her feel uneasy.
Dallas Police say no criminal offenses have occurred at the transitional home, but, the property owner does face a code violation for failing to register the home as a rental property, which is required by city ordinance.
Atkins said he plans to come up with an ordinance to better police the homes. We need to do an inventory. How do we really know how many people live there and what their backgrounds are? he asked. They have a right to live in the neighborhood, but because there are children, you can never be too careful.
Atkins said more and more transitional homes are popping up in his South Oak Cliff district, and he believes there should also be a way to notify residents who will be moving in next door especially if it is a transitional home, where the tenants stay on a short-term basis.
The operator of the home on Hot Springs Court said the residents include one recovering substance abuser; one person suffering from dementia; and several who have recently left a VA hospital after being treated for post traumatic stress.
Code compliance officers issued a notice of one violation on Wednesday for failure to register the home as a rental property. It could lead to a $615 fine if the proper paperwork is not filled out within a specified time frame.
E-mail ddenmon@wfaa.com
