Back in February I posted a bit about the recovery house issue.  It was the one year anniversary since the town hall meeting called to discuss the issue and the promise made to return to the community had not been fulfilled. Councilwoman Maria Quinones-Sanchez offered a response which I posted here.

Recently I was contacted by Dan Savage, our former Councilman, with some words of clarification.  They follow in full below.

As a life long resident of Frankford, I feel compelled to set the record straight.

Frankford is my passion. I went to grade school at St. Joachim’s and learned to play basketball at the Deni Basketball Courts. I played at Overington Park and my friends played football for the Frankford Chargers at Whitehall which is now known as Gambrel Recreation Center.  After school, I would walk up Frankford Avenue. I would stop at Schwartz’s Pretzels or get a slice of pizza at Leandro’s with my friends. Sometimes I would stop for a haircut at Lorenzo’s where I still get my haircut today.

I have great memories of Frankford and wish for brighter days for the neighborhood my family has lived in for 4 generations.

For 13 months, I had the privilege and opportunity to serve the people of Frankford from November 27, 2006 to January 7, 2008 as Councilman. The first minute I got in office, I used the resources available to a Councilperson to fight for Frankford.

I was the Councilman who had the basketball courts remilled and color coated at Deni Playground because I wanted the kids to enjoy Deni like I did. I had over $1.6 million (on top of the $1.3 million I helped get donated for Operation Field Rescue) put into Gambrel Recreation Center because the Frankford Chargers deserved a better home.  I placed over $93,000 into the restoration of the historic stonewall at Overington Park because I am invested in the neighborhood. In addition, I had new basketball backboards and swings installed as well as the fencing fixed at Wilmot Park (known as the “The Square” to people in the neighborhood).

I allocated $1 million to the Frankford Avenue Business Corridor to help revitalize the avenue. Councilwoman Sanchez moved that money the first month in her term. In addition, she introduced a bill in Council to terminate the Frankford Special Services District. I allocated $450,000 and already had landscape architects working on putting a spraypark at the old tennis courts at Deni Playground. Councilwoman Sanchez moved that money from Frankford.

When it comes to recovery houses, I fought them before I was in Council, during my term, and even today. Mayor Rendell brought us recovery houses in 1995.  Please see below the excerpt from the DBH website.

In 1995, the Philadelphia Coordinating Office for Drug and Alcohol Abuse Programs (now known as the Office of Addiction Services) established a recovery house system for persons enrolled in state-licensed outpatient substance abuse programs. The goal was to improve treatment outcomes by placing people in a positive, stable living environment that is conducive to recovery. (http://www.dbhmrs.org/recovery-house-initiative )

This is a laudable goal. Unfortunately, because there is a lack of adequate control and monitoring, these recovery houses create problems for the stability and welfare of the communities where they are placed.

If recovery houses or drug treatment centers do not have to go before the Zoning Board, they can only be stopped by the Administration (Dept. of Behavioral Health/Office of Addiction Services). It has to come from the top.

After reading the response of Councilwoman Sanchez to your article regarding the recovery houses, I felt compelled to set the record straight. This is not the first time Councilwoman Sanchez has taken credit for the works of other people in Frankford. The bottom line is she did not come through on her plans for the “recovery task force”. At the end of her long response, she still did not address your initial concern. Instead, she took it as an opportunity to run off a laundry list of good things that happened in Frankford. Unfortunately, she had nothing or very little to do with any of them.

Daniel J. Savage

Tim Savage, Margie Rivera, Brian Wisneiwski, Pete Specos

The hearing at the Zoning Board of Adjustment for the 1522-24 church Street application was scheduled for 4:00 pm Wednesday.  This issue goes all that way to March of this year when we became aware of the new owners plan to use the properties for recovery houses.  Since the houses are near a church, school and home for young girls, it did not sound like a good idea.  Margie Rivera who is lives closest to the houses did not think it was a good idea either.  She was besieged at all hours of the day and night by noise in the house next door and people coming and going at all hours of the day and night.

The houses are zoned as single family dwellings and cannot be used to house more than three unrelated people.  Neighbors observed many men living there.  At some point, the men were moved out and women moved in.  The owner then applied to convert the houses into duplexes that would have permitted six people to legally live in each one.  The community came together to oppose that maneuver.

Petitions, letters from city, state and federal officials and all other stake holders were collected and a hearing was scheduled.  The owner sent a request for a delay at the first hearing.  At yesterday’s hearing the attorney for the owner sent a notice that he was withdrawing from the case.  The owner did not attend and the case was dismissed.

Attending the hearing were Pete Specos, Tim Savage and Brian Wisniewski from the Frankford Civic, Margie Rivera, Rita Lugrine and Joe Fernandes Legislative Assistant from Maria Quinones Sanchez office.  This campaign took a great deal of effort on the part of the civic to coordinate the drive.  They all should be applauded.   The unsung here in this is really Margie Rivera who stepped up and just said no.

This is not over however.  Now the line is clearly drawn.  No more than three unrelated people in those houses.  L&I has to enforce this.  We will see how it goes.  You can be sure that the community is watching.

Jon Campisi of the Northeast Times brings us this account of the second season at Deni playground.  Read it here.

This week’s Northeast Times brings us an article on Dan Savage’s accomplishment’s during his time in office. It does a better job than I could in listing them and I have to admit I did not know about all of the things noted in the story.

The most important thing he has given Frankford is some long needed attention. He clearly sees Frankford as important to the health of the Northeast and has worked hard to get some things done.

From the very visible things like the Deni Playground and derelict building demolition to the less exciting but very important Transit-Oriented Development zoning changes. So far he has introduced or co-sponsored 38 bills in City Council and he has not left office yet. I’m sure we will be hearing from Dan in the future.

Now let’s hope Maria Quinones-Sanchez hits the deck running and keep the momentum going.