Housing agency didn't hide PADS project

In response to the June 9 editorial "PADS, housing authority failed to trust public about homeless project," I disagree with the position that the project was handled poorly by PADS and the Lake County Housing Authority, and the suggestion that neighbors were at best forgotten and at worst kept in the dark intentionally.

Nothing was hidden from the community. Both organizations were working together to fulfill their missions with property and a building that LCHA owns and has the right to use. LCHA and PADS worked with the Lake County Planning, Building, and Development department throughout their planning process. When questions from neighbors arose, PADS and LCHA held an open house that they were not required to hold, to "explain the project, answer questions, allay fears, and solicit ideas."

Furthermore, there were plans in place to hold future meetings and to create an Advisory Board made up of community members to continue the dialogue. These plans for continued outreach and inclusion were halted by the lawsuit filed by the community group.

If we're taking an honest look at what happened, it's clear that these residents were not really interested in getting more information or having their fears allayed. They were only interested in keeping 13 individuals who they unreasonably feared and deemed to be undesirable, out of their back yards.

Ultimately, perhaps it should be considered that LCHA and PADS did trust the public. They trusted the public to be respectful of the fact that everyone has a right to a safe home. They trusted the public to educate themselves about mental illness and understand that mental illness does not necessarily equate to danger. They trusted that the public would respond to the residents with compassion and humanity instead of bigotry and intolerance.

Sara Thomas

Gurnee