Neighbors, law-enforcement veteran and an operator clash over proposed sober-living house on May Avenue

Residents of May Avenue and nearby streets urged the City Council to adopt a local ordinance regulating for-profit sober-living homes after a contested application for a house on May Avenue drew several public comments at the May 6 meeting.

Multiple speakers, including a retired police detective, described neighborhood problems they attributed to poorly run sober living facilities: frequent calls for police service, incidents of violence and property damage, unpermitted construction and alleged health risks from improper lead-paint removal at the site of the proposed house. Several speakers said they support recovery services but want local rules that require humane living conditions, oversight and occupancy limits.

"For-profit facilities that warehouse as many occupants as possible into a structure with substandard living condition...exploit their occupants for profit," said Sam Ulland, speaking for Bay Avenue residents. Ulland and other neighbors asked the council to adopt an ordinance similar to those enacted by other Southern California cities that survived court…