Northwest Christian School seeks your support in keeping campus safety a priority.
Dear Crusader community,
As part of a request with the city of Phoenix (Z-66-20-1), we have learned that Asura Healthcare, LLC is seeking to rezone the 3.12 acres located at the southeast corner of 43rd Ave. and Juniper from C-O (Commercial Office) to C-1 (Neighborhood Commercial), allowing the space to be used as a 54-bed "Community Residence Center" for drug and alcohol rehabilitation.
Without a doubt, I have an appreciation for the work that Asura Healthcare is doing generally and I support the limited number of smaller, home-based residential treatment options already in the neighborhoods around the school. The primary difference here is the number of beds and the proximity to our school. In addition to the concerns that we have already communicated, working with the school's attorney, we have prepared a letter of opposition (read here).
Beyond my obvious concerns regarding such a facility adjacent to a school, I have concerns with the way that this rezoning process has unfolded:
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The obligatory rezoning sign (view here) in front of the property is inaccurate and although these inaccuracies have been drawn to the attention of those involved, the errant sign remains in place.
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Apparently, there was a "neighborhood meeting" on August 9th (the first day of school) and the developer states that mandatory meeting notices were sent out. The school never received such a notice and a public records request reveals the reason: the school's address was omitted from the mailing list.
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The school's objections to this rezoning request have been made public and our oppposition is part of the "Final Staff Report Z-66-20-1" (review here), but unfortunately, this report states that the "Staff Recommendation" is "Approval, with stipulations". Although our opposition is public and school contact information is provided (including my personal cell phone number), no attempt has been made by Asura Healthcare, LLC to reach out to the school to allay our concerns.
- I have reached out via email and phone to the directors of the proposed facility and asked for additional information. As of this writing, I have not received a single response.
As a product of these issues, I am inviting the Northwest Christian School community to reach out to those individuals steering this process and allow them to understand that you might also share my concerns. If you would like to contact these individuals, please send emails to the contact information below. Please feel free to 'cut and paste' any of the content from this email or its attachments within your emails.
Dr. John Gilliam, Medical Director, Asura Healthcare, LLC
Grover Peters, Grover Consulting
I am told that a virtual meeting will happen on October 14th and will include the opportunity for public commentary. Although no information has been provided regarding that meeting, in your email, you can ask David Simmons to participate. Then, when and if further information on the meeting is provided, I will convey that to our families with hopes that you will participate.
Please reach out to me with any questions.
Geoff Brown
Superintendent
(623)225-5573 (cell)
gbrown@ncsaz.org
