‘The work has been good’: Arlington Heights group home to expand capacity, despite opposition of neighbors

A group home for young men ages 17 to 21 has earned Arlington Heights village board zoning approvals to allow four more people to live there.

Shelter Youth & Family Services’ request to increase residential capacity — from six to 10 — comes five years after the Arlington Heights-based nonprofit moved its transitional living program to the duplex at 207-209 E. Valley Lane.

The group home’s 2021 relocation — from busy Golf Road to a residential block just north of the Northpoint Shopping Center — came after a contentious and lengthy village approvals process, when board members ultimately agreed to set the six-person limit to assuage neighborhood opposition over safety and property values.

Shelter Inc.’s latest special use permit request was far less contentious, though a half dozen neighbors lodged complaints at the village boardroom podium Tuesday night. Another resident from the back of the room accused Mayor Jim Tinaglia and trustees of “not listening to our voices.”

“You didn’t listen the first time, and you’re not now,” the man said, before storming out of the room.

In 2021, the organization sought permission to house up to a dozen residents. Board members approved half that number to “see how it goes,” while leaving the door open to a higher capacity at a later time, Tinaglia noted.

“There were a number of concerns … a certain fear of the unknown,” Tinaglia said. “But now the unknown is known, and the work has been good.”

“But I think the job is unfinished,” he added. “These residents need to continue to be good neighbors. The workforce in the house needs to continue to do excellent work with these youngsters.”

Shelter’s outgoing CEO who is also an elected Arlington Heights trustee, Carina Santa Maria, abstained from the discussion and vote Tuesday. Santa Maria is transitioning from her professional role this month as she runs as the Democratic candidate for state Senate in the 27th District.

The agency’s two-year transitional program helps those aging out of the foster care system achieve self-sufficiency and independence through life skills training, such as how to budget, apply for jobs, shop for groceries and do the laundry, according to Gina Ciulla, Shelter’s chief program officer.

There is now a wait list to get in, and the home on Valley Lane has the physical space for more residents, Ciulla said.

The six current residents occupy three shared bedrooms at 209 E. Valley Lane. The adjoining unit at 207 E. Valley Lane also has three bedrooms, which are used for staff offices and supervision space.

The four new residents would reside in two of those bedrooms, Ciulla said.

She said on-site staff enforce accountability measures, including a strict midnight curfew.

The number of police calls to the home over the past five years — nine in 2022, four in 2023, 18 in 2024, 22 in 2025, and three so far this year — was a point of contention cited by both supporters and opponents.

“With an increase of let’s say four more people, you’ll have an increase in those calls as well,” said Pamela McRaith, who lives nearby. “I wouldn’t expect that from any other household in the Ivy Hill neighborhood.”

Shelter officials said the spike was attributable almost entirely to one youth who moved there in 2024 and moved out in 2025.

More than 20 of the 56 calls for service were related to missing person reports, police department statistics show. Under state requirements, group home staff members make one call to police when someone isn’t home by curfew, and a second call when they’re found, according to Village Manager Randy Recklaus.

By comparison, there were 553 calls to the Shelter home at 397 W. Golf Road the decade before the 2021 relocation.

Recklaus said Police Chief Nick Pecora believes there is no cause for concern based on recent history.

“The worst fears that were expressed and a version of reality that existed on Golf Road is just not happening here,” Recklaus said. “There are not issues of folks living in this facility out doing wrong in the community, causing police issues in any way, shape or form.”

cplacek@dailyherald.com