Campton Hills tables vote on rehab center
Campton Hills residents Monday continued to voice their opposition to a 98-bed inpatient substance abuse treatment center proposed for a former boys school within the village.
Trustees did not take a final vote and continued the matter to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 8 at the Bell Graham Elementary School, 4N505 Fox Mill Blvd., St. Charles.
Residents argue the facility will burden ambulance services, lower property values for surrounding homes and be bad for the village as a whole, and pose a safety risk for nearby homes from addicts leaving Kiva and stealing to get money for another fix.
“We’re living in an unbalanced society, a lot of desperate people,” said resident Ricky Nelson, one of dozens to speak against the plan. “To bring in anything that would be adverse to safety, I would oppose that.”
Officials for Kiva Recovery Center say the center at the 120-acre former Glenwood Boys School will offer high-end treatment targeted at professionals and running $30,000 for 30-day stay.
Kiva officials have acknowledged that heroin and meth addicts also will be treated at the facility, but patients will not be detoxed there and are choosing treatment instead of having it forced on them.
“We would be proud to be part of Campton Hills,” said Steven Sonberg, an attorney representing Kiva, who urged trustees to “separate facts from fears.”
Residents also questioned why the village did not hold an advisory referendum this coming April as trustees have sought opinions on less controversial topics, the most recent being video gambling and warning sirens in the Nov. 6 election.
The village mailed out 3,600 postcards — one for each household — earlier this month in an attempt to gauge resident opinions. The postcards were due back at village hall on Saturday and officials hoped to release the results at Monday’s meeting.
But Village President Patsy Smith said officials still had to double count them before releasing the final tally.
Marcus Moreno, who is buying a home in the village in two weeks, said trustees need to consider the negative impact Kiva will have on property values.
“Let’s be honest, a house is not only a place to live. It’s also an investment,” he said. “We need to protect that.”
Trustees also have hired their own appraisal firm to study whether Kiva will damage property values. That study hopefully will be available at the next meeting, Smith said.
The village also has posted presentations from Kiva officials, as well as transcripts from past meetings, at villageofcamptonhills.org.