LAKE VIEW TERRACE : Residents to Negotiate on Drug Rehab Center

Nearly four years after they fiercely fought a proposed drug rehabilitation center--even one briefly endorsed by Nancy Reagan--Lake View Terrace residents on Tuesday gingerly embraced the latest proposal to open such a facility in their neighborhood.

The words of compromise came in response to a city permit application filed Tuesday by Phoenix House Inc.

“The original intent was to fight, fight, fight,” said Joycelin Furginson, an officer with the Lake View Terrace Home Improvement Assn. “But realistically, we had to come to the conclusion that we would only succeed in delaying it and if we did delay it, would we ever be able to open negotiations with them again?”

Although the association has tentatively agreed to negotiate with Phoenix House, some individuals still oppose the project. Phoenix House wants to turn the former Lake View Medical Center into a residential high school and counseling program for 150 recovering substance abusers ages 13 to 17.