Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transitional Living Permit topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council grants special-use permit for Mental Health Association transitional living at 140 N. 30th St., adds ownership condition
Summary
The Omaha City Council approved a special-use permit allowing a transitional living facility at 140 North 30th Street for up to eight occupants, with 24/7 trained staff; the council amended the permit so it does not automatically transfer if the property changes ownership.
The Omaha City Council on Aug. 5 unanimously approved a special-use permit for a transitional living facility at 140 North 30th Street, allowing a maximum of eight occupants and requiring around-the-clock trained staff. Council members also amended the permit so it is specific to the Mental Health Association of Nebraska and would become void upon change of ownership.
David Levy of Baird Holm Law Firm represented the applicant, Mental Health Association of Nebraska, and said the organization had extensive outreach and letters of support from neighborhood representatives and elected officials. Levy told the council the planning department and planning board recommended approval and that the planning board and the city planning department found the residents qualify for reasonable accommodation under federal fair-housing law and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Levy also said the applicant sought and obtained a variance from the zoning board of appeals to allow the proposed facility despite a zoning ordinance requirement that similar facilities be a half-mile apart; the variance was granted for a facility located 0.47 miles away.
When asked for capacity and staffing details, Levy said the location would have "a maximum of 8" occupants and "staff trained, licensed staff, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, ranging between 1 to 2 overnight and, sometimes as many as 4 during the day. But always at least 1." Casey Parker of the Mental Health Association clarified later that the staff are not licensed but are certified in what the organization calls intentional peer support: "they aren't licensed. They are certified in, what we call intentional peer support," Parker said.
Council member Jean Stothert Melton (identified in the hearing as a council member) moved to amend Exhibit B with a condition that the permit "shall be specific to this applicant only and shall not run with the land," so the permit would become void upon change of ownership and require a new application. Levy confirmed the applicant had no objection to that amendment. The amendment passed on a 7-0 roll call; the final motion to approve the permit as amended also passed 7-0.
Support for the project cited neighborhood outreach and letters of support, including from members of the Lincoln City Council, a Lincoln Police Department representative and State Sen. Terrell McKinney; Levy said the Jocelyn Castle Neighborhood Association intended a formal letter of support but had not completed a board action in time for the hearing.
The planning record and public hearing described the proposed use as transitional living for people with mental-health and substance-abuse issues, and the planning department found the reasonable-accommodation request applicable.
The council's action adds a condition limiting the permit to the current operator and records occupancy and staffing expectations in the hearing record; the motion did not specify enforcement mechanisms or a follow-up reporting schedule in the council discussion.
