SPRINGDALE -- The potential development of a Piney Ridge facility that treats young sex offenders has provoked passionate disagreement from some community members, but Piney Ridge staff says there's no cause for concern.
The Planning Commission will decide Tuesday whether to approve a request from Sherry Farms to rezone property in the Habberton Road area from an agricultural district to a general commercial district. Sherry Farms hopes to sell the land to Acadia, which seeks to build a Piney Ridge center in the location.
When and Where
Tuesday’s Springdale Planning Commission meeting will be held at 5 p.m. in City Council chambers of the City Administration Building, 201 Spring St.
The rezoning was up for approval during the Aug. 2 commission meeting, but was tabled after residents who live on Habberton attended and spoke against the facility.
"This is right behind my house," Lori Davis said during the meeting. "We know this is just a rezoning, but I feel like if we don't get on top of it now, it will be too late at some point."
Davis said she was adamantly against having a facility that treats young sex offenders only 125 feet from where her teenage daughter lives.
Doris Singleton, chief executive officer of Piney Ridge, said while she understands the concerns, Piney residents are being misrepresented when they are looked at as the same as violent, adult sex offenders.
"Our kids are not adult sex offenders, they are children and adolescents with mental health disorders who have displayed sexual maladaptive behaviors," Singleton said. "Children with mental health disorders who have displayed this type of behavior are very receptive to treatment and have a high rehabilitative rate."
Dr. Sam Wallace, director of clinical services for Piney Ridge, said 4.9 percent of adolescents with sexual behavior disorders become reoffenders after treatment.
"Kids and adults are not the same," Wallace said. "The judicial system recognizes a significant difference between adults and kids."
Piney Ridge bringing a dangerous presence to the neighborhood is another misrepresentation, said Megan Wedgworth, the center's director of marketing and admissions.
"We're not going to be bringing any significant safety concerns," Wedgworth said. "Factually, we have not had any community safety issues. We provide a high level of supervision and security within the facility. It's a highly structured program with intense treatment."
Piney Ridge is at 2805 E. Zion Road in Fayetteville. It has 102 beds for male and female residents who vary in age from 7 to 17 years old. A 17-year-old resident can turn 18 at the facility and continue to live there and receive treatment, however, an 18-year-old cannot be admitted to the facility, Wallace said.
Piney Ridge is licensed to admit and treat sex offenders between 5 and 21, but the facility maintains a practice of admitting offenders between 7 and 17 years old, Wedgworth said.
The residents are divided into four units by age and by gender, Wallace said.
Many of the kids are victims of either dysfunction in the home or sexual abuse. About 70 to 80 percent have witnessed domestic violence and between 30 and 60 percent are sex abuse victims, Wallace said.
"We're treating kids with mental health disorders and sexual behavior problems to provide the best outcome for the kid, family and community," Wallace said.
If the rezoning is approved and a new facility is built, the Fayetteville location will be closed, Singleton said.
The new center will be able to accommodate more residents with 138 Psychiatric Resident Treatment Facility beds and 30 group home beds.
Many of the community members who spoke against the development said they support adolescents with sexual behavior issues receiving treatment, but do not support the center being near residences, schools and C.L. "Charlie" and Willie George Park.
The Piney Ridge staff met with the assistant principal at Walter Turnbow Elementary School, 3390 Habberton Road, the principal at Sonora Elementary School, 20200 Sonora Road, and the principal at Lakeside Junior High School, 3050 Hylton Road, Wedgworth said.
Piney Ridge residents are educated at the facility and are part of the Springdale School District. Though Piney Ridge is in Fayetteville, its location, which is near Springdale, puts it in the Springdale School District zone. If Piney Ridge builds the new facility, it will remain within the Springdale district, Singleton said.
Jim Rollins, superintendent of Springdale schools, said he has had several meetings with Piney Ridge regarding the potential new facility.
"We have worked with Piney Ridge for years, and they have an excellent service record, and I am satisfied that they would be in compliance with any state regulation in order to gain approval," Rollins said.
During last month's meeting, community members also expressed concern over past stories of Piney Ridge residents breaking free from the facility.
Runaway situations are referred to as "elopements," which have occurred at Piney Ridge, Singleton said.
In 2013, Piney Ridge had three elopements, two in 2014, five in 2015 and two so far this year, Wallace said.
"In one of the more recent [elopements] a milk crate was left out by a member of the dietary staff, and one of the kids turned it over and climbed on it and climbed over the fence," Wallace said.
The fence is about 8 feet high, Singleton said.
Law enforcement is called to locate runaways, Wallace said.
Wallace said he has been with Piney Ridge for 13 years, and in that time an elopement has not resulted in the runaway resident committing violence or a sexual offense. Wallace said the only crime he knows of a runaway resident committing is shoplifting from a convenience store.
Singleton said facility residents are well supervised with a 1-to-6 patient to staff ratio during waking hours and a 1-to-8 ratio during sleeping hours. Employees monitor residents as they sleep to ensure there are no runaway attempts or any other inappropriate behavior, Singleton said.
There are 175 employees on staff. If a new facility is built, the staff will increase to 225 employees to match the resident increase, Singleton said.
"We would continue to provide the appropriate levels of supervision we currently provide," she said. "Anytime we identify a need for an increase in the level of supervision, we provide that."
Singleton said she respects and takes seriously community members' fears.
"We do everything we can to ensure the safety of our residents and our community," she said.
Mayor Doug Sprouse acknowledged the sensitivity of the issue and the legitimacy of both sides' point of view at the conclusion of last month's commission meeting.
"There's no bad guys here," Sprouse said last month.
Sprouse expects another large turnout Tuesday.
"I would fully expect that many of the same neighbors and people of concern that were there at the last planning commission will be back at this one," he said Thursday.
Jon Comstock will be at Tuesday's meeting. The former Benton County Circuit Court judge is a University of Arkansas Law School teacher and member of Judicial Equality for Mental Illness. He said he will stand and speak if he thinks it is necessary.
Comstock said he is not a mental health expert and is not speaking as a JEMI representative, but strongly feels there are undue fears toward Piney Ridge residents.
"This is a lockdown facility, (and) there's a lot of control of the young people that are there," Comstock said.
Dangers exist all around, Comstock said.
"There's a lot of people out in this society right now who need this treatment Piney Ridge offers, and they're not getting it, (and) they're out in our population anyway," he said. "The good news is that Piney Ridge exists and is there to offer services that these kids need."
If the Planning Commission approves the rezoning, it moves on to City Council for final approval. If it fails, the petitioner has 15 days to appeal to the council, said Ernest Cate, city attorney.
The location is ideal for Piney Ridge because it offers sufficient building space as well plenty of green space for the Piney Ridge children to play on, Singleton said.
Singleton said she is reaching out to residents, and anyone with concerns is welcome to contact her and her staff to schedule a meeting.
"We're very hopeful that this property will be the location that we're able to relocate our facility to," she said. "We hope to be able to alleviate the fears that are there by providing accurate information about our services."
NW News on 09/05/2016