No welcome wagon for sober houses

It’s become increasingly popular to talk about addiction problems as a public health issue, with those suffering from the problem in need of help, not scorn or jail. Much less popular is the idea of that help being delivered next door. Especially when that means packing the programs into communities that feel they already do more than their share when it comes to dealing with the addiction crisis.

Across the state, “sober homes,” residential settings that provide temporary housing to those who have gone through treatment and are trying to get back on their feet, are facing pushback from municipal officials. Today’s Globe focuses on a showdown in Fitchburg, where Donald Flagg was told he must install a sprinkler system in a sober home he ran. When he moved the program to a new location in Fitchburg, a city inspector said he was operating a lodging home in the triple-decker, something the area was not zoned for. 

The issue is playing out in court, where operators of sober homes have asserted that state zoning law and the federal Fair Housing Act’s prohibition of discrimination against the disabled exempt their programs from the regulations local officials are looking to impose. 

Fitchburg’s building commissioner says Flagg actually runs a “a pretty tight ship,” but says other operators are just looking to exploit the business for a buck, while maintaining filthy homes with blocked fire exits and no smoke detectors. 

Richard Winant, the former head of a state association of sober homes, tells the Globe sprinkler systems can cost $30,000 to $50,000 per building. He said forcing that cost on operators would lead most to shut down. “People need to understand: If they all went away,” he said, “you better start building more jail cells.”

In Boston, problems from the concentration of drug addicts gathered in the area around Mass. Ave. and Melnea Cass Blvd., where a lot of treatment facilities are based, have prompted calls for services to be more evenly distributed across the region. 

But when it comes to having communities share the burden of helping those dealing with addiction, small-scale sober homes seem to be as much a part of the problem as the solution. 

State Rep. Liz Miranda, whose Roxbury-based district abuts Mass. Ave. and Melnea Cass, said recently on the Codcast that the neighborhoods surrounding the troubled area are already  saturated with such services. “We have a prison, we have a biolab, we have multiple methadone clinics, we have a hospital, we have multiple shelters, we have multiple sober homes, some that are registered with the Commonwealth, some that are not — all concentrated in a community that’s already struggling, a working class, poor community,” said Miranda. “What’s a fair share?” 

The Meetinghouse Hill area of Dorchester that she represents has been at the center of a controversy involving a businessman who operates several sober homes in the neighborhood and has been looking to open another.

Of the 180 certified sober homes across the state, nearly 10 percent of them (17) are  in Dorchester. 

“Why is it only happening to the neighborhoods of Dorchester, Mattapan, and Roxbury?” longtime Meetinghouse Hill resident Lisa Villaroel asked in a February story by the Dorchester Reporter and WBUR. “How come we don’t see them happening in Milton?” 

BEACON HILL

Lawmakers heard from former law enforcement officers who were severely injured on the job as they consider a bill that would grant full pay until retirement age for police badly hurt on the job. (Boston Herald) 

A restaurant company and firm that holds patents on the methodology are making a renewed push for state officials to adopt a system for faster collection of sales taxes. (Boston Globe) 

Disagreement over a provision dealing with racial profiling continues to hold up legislation to ban texting while driving. (Boston Herald)

MUNICIPAL MATTERS

The Department of Fire Services, which oversees the firefighter academy, has put aside $3.2 million in its fiscal 2020 budget to develop a new training facility in Bridgewater. (Brockton Enterprise)

Health and youth officials plan to host briefings in Westboro and Shrewsbury for parents and students on the dangers of vaping. (Telegram & Gazette)

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

To deal with his signature issue of hardening the border with Mexico, President Trump suggested installing a moat filled with alligators and snakes, electrifying a barrier and putting sharp spikes on top, and shooting those trying to cross, according to a New York Times account of a March meeting.

House Ways and Means chairman Richard Neal wants to interview a whistleblower who alleges inappropriate attempts to influence an audit of President Trump’s taxes, and he said it will be up to House counsel whether the complaint is made public. (New England Public Radio/WBUR) 

Two Trump supporters challenged Congressman Seth Moulton during a town hall in Danvers, but nearly everyone in the room agreed with the Salem Democrat’s characterization that Trump pressed the president of Ukraine to interfere in the US election. (Salem News)  Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed that he was among those listening in on Trump’s phone call with the Ukrainian leader. (Washington Post)

To prevent repeats of the motorcycle crash that killed seven last summer, Moulton has proposed unlocking federal funding to pay for communications upgrades for states’ regulation of drivers. (Eagle-Tribune) 

State Reps. Nika Elugardo and Andy Vargas traveled to Central America to get a better sense of what is driving the migration to the United States, and found people who are in fear for their lives. (WGBH) 

ELECTIONS

Scot Lehigh tells Dan Koh not to become a “whiny loser” and give up the idea of a rematch next year against Rep. Lori Trahan. (Boston Globe) 

Black voters who had been skeptical of Sen. Elizabeth Warren are coming around to the presidential candidate, according to recent polling. (Politico) 

With a kickoff announcement today in Fall River, former Patrick administration communications director and Brookline selectwoman Jesse Mermell will become the fourth declared candidate for the seat Rep. Joe Kennedy is vacating to run for Senate. (Boston Globe) 

Kennedy and Sen. Ed Markey participated in a roundtable focused on the Trump administration’s drastic reduction in immigration admissions. (CommonWealth) The Baker administration, meanwhile, affirms that Massachusetts will continue accepting immigrants; the Trump order on immigration gave states and municipalities the ability to block immigrant resettlement. (MassLive)

New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell trounced his challengers with 57 percent of the vote as he and City Councilor Brian Gomes emerged as the top two vote-getters in Tuesday’s preliminary election. Gomes also came in fifth among five city council incumbents. (Standard Times)

Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist and Paul Craney of the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance host a meeting of center-right activists in Marlborough to talk political strategy. (State House News)

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Apple farmer Ed O’Neill thanked Congresswoman Lori Trahan for clearing up some paperwork to allow his farm to use migrant workers. (Lowell Sun) 

A strike against Battery Wharf Hotel on Boston’s waterfront is in its fourth week, with no sign of it ending anytime soon. (Boston Globe) 

EDUCATION

A federal judge ruled that Harvard does not illegally discriminate against Asian-American applicants, dealing a big victory to universities’ discretion to use race as a factor in admission decisions. (Boston Globe) 

The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 2019 Accountability Report shows Fall River will need to provide additional support to half of all district schools. (Herald News) 

Holy Cross reports a huge jump in sexual fondling on campus, with 102 of the 104 incidents attributed to a single person. (MassLive)

Students at Bard College at Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington dispute the local police chief’s assertion that race did not play a role in the attack on a black woman on campus. The students also criticize the Berkshire Eagle for reporting the police chief’s assertion. (Berkshire Eagle)

HEALTH/HEALTH CARE

Telemedicine continues to lag in Massachusetts without legislative action on pricing. (State House News)

TRANSPORTATION 

East Coast states, including the Baker administration in Massachusetts, outline a carbon pricing plan that will have much the same impact on consumers as a gas tax but function differently in two key ways. (CommonWealth)

Decrying that “everybody wants everything, but nobody wants to pay for anything,” the Lowell Sun tears into the respondents to a MassINC Polling Group survey that found widespread support for commuter rail improvements and mixed reactions to methods for funding that. 

On top of train delays, passengers are getting frustrated with the time it’s taking the MBTA to repair out-of-service elevators at T stations. (Boston Globe)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

The Department of Public Utilities approves a National Grid rate hike increasing the monthly customer charge from $5.50 to $7. The mammoth ruling rejected an infrastructure grant program for Gateway Cities. (CommonWealth)

A report released Tuesday by the Association to Preserve Cape Cod shows that the vast majority of the region’s lakes, ponds, estuaries and bays have poor water quality. (Cape Cod Times) 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/COURTS

The State Police are creating a unit to focus on unsolved homicides and other violent crimes. (Boston Herald)