Southeast : Council OKs Plans for Halfway House
Months of debate over a proposed halfway house in North Long Beach all but ended this week when the City Council gave final approval to a project that will provide interim housing for up to 50 inmates.
The approval carried the condition that admission be limited to inmates who have never been convicted of violent or sex crimes. But the stipulation was not enough to satisfy opponents, most of them neighbors of the proposed center. In addition to concerns for public safety, they contend that the facility is an inappropriate use of industrial space that could lower property values.
However, City Council members praised the record of Volunteers of America, which will operate the facility. Volunteers of America President Bob Pratt said the center, to be located in the 2200 block of East 69th Street, could be operating by early next year.
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