Don’t Let Fear Keep Treatment Center Away : Communities such as the East Valley should welcome facilities like Phoenix House, which would go a long way toward helping troubled youth get off and stay off drugs.

I am disappointed and disturbed by the level of rhetoric and community opposition being voiced against Phoenix House, the drug-abuse treatment center for teen-agers in Lake View Terrace.

Several years ago, when I first heard about Phoenix House coming to Lake View Terrace, I went along with some community leaders who were against the project. That was before I investigated and experienced the benefits that Phoenix House has been providing troubled teen-agers in other locations for more than 25 years.

I was disappointed when Phoenix House temporarily halted its efforts to move forward on the project four years ago.

I am delighted that, with the City Council committee approval last week, it is close to opening the much-needed drug treatment center for adolescents on the site of the former Lake View Medical Center. I just hope the committee’s good sense carries over to the full council when it votes on Wednesday.

Four years ago one of my daughters came to me to tell me she needed help to overcome a drug problem. When I inquired about the best place for help, Phoenix House was recommended. Even though I was originally against Phoenix House, I decided that, for my daughter’s sake, I needed to learn about their program.

My daughter and I went to Phoenix House in Orange County for an interview. I was struck by the look of the facility. It did not match my image of a place where drug addicts would be living. There were no fences, lawns were beautifully maintained, everything was immaculate, and residents were nicely dressed.

Although the Phoenix House program is highly structured, I felt a real sense of family. The purpose of the facility is to encourage a family-like atmosphere, not a jail. I observed that residents and staff showed mutual respect.

My daughter was accepted into the program and now is completely rehabilitated. She is working hard to keep her family together and lead a productive life.

When I was helping my daughter deal with her drug problem, I watched as those in Pacoima who were against Phoenix House raised their voices in fear. It brought back unpleasant memories.

My family and I were one of the first black families to move into our neighborhood 29 years ago. The same realtor who sold us our home went to all the white neighbors and filled them with fears that property values were going to go down, and they had better sell and move on. In fear, they did sell their homes, the neighborhood became all black and the realtor made lots of money.

That same type of fear is being used today by some Lake View Terrace residents, afraid that their property values will drop if Phoenix House moves in. Others have a different kind of fear. They are afraid that their community is being singled out as a dumping ground for things that other parts of the city don’t want.

I understand those fears, but there is no foundation for them. To my knowledge no one has challenged Phoenix House’s statement that in its 25-year history there has never been a recorded incident of a resident’s causing any problems to a neighbor or to the property of a neighbor of the facility. And there has been no violent behavior. Anyone accepted into Phoenix House must be drug-free.

This country’s drug problem is growing daily, especially among adolescents. It is a major cause of juvenile prostitution, AIDS, teen pregnancy, our growing school drop-out rate and teen-age runaways.

Where drugs are concerned, there are no barriers that separate one class from another or one neighborhood from another. Wherever you live and wherever you go, there are drugs. Everyone is affected, not just young people. We need communities to welcome facilities like Phoenix House.

There are so many people who want and need help and have no place to go. We as a society condemn them and make them feel less human. We are treating the drug problem as “out of sight, out of mind,” only the problem won’t go away. Fear and resentment have blinded some people to the good that the Phoenix House program will do. They have lost sight of the facts.

Many others recognize we have a drug problem and understand the desperate need for such a facility.

Phoenix House won’t be able to solve all of the drug problems in our community--it won’t have enough beds, staff or money. But it will go a long way toward helping our troubled youth get off and stay off drugs. We cannot afford to wait.