Planning commission recommends city council allow Oxford House at Hannah Pointe as collaborative living for eight residents

The Lincoln Lancaster County Planning Commission on July 9 recommended that the Lincoln City Council grant a reasonable accommodation to allow an Oxford House at 6010 South 80th Street to operate as a collaborative living facility with up to eight unrelated residents, finding the request consistent with federal and state fair-housing protections.

The commission voted 6-0 to approve the recommendation. The Planning Department staff framed the request as a reasonable-accommodation petition under the federal Fair Housing Act and the Nebraska Fair Housing Act and Lincoln Municipal Code chapter 1.28; the final decision will be made by the City Council.

David Carey, director of the Planning Department, told commissioners the request seeks an accommodation to the zoning-code definition of “family” to allow nine unrelated residents to live at the single-family property; the applicant agreed during the hearing to amend the request to seek collaborative-living status for eight unrelated residents instead. Carey summarized the staff review checklist for reasonable-accommodation requests, including whether the residents meet the definition of disabled under the Fair Housing Act, whether alternatives exist, impacts on the comprehensive plan and neighborhood, and whether the accommodation would require fundamental alteration of zoning rules.

Mark Falson, attorney for Oxford House Hannah Pointe, said Oxford House residences are self-run, financially self-supporting sober-living homes and that residents are disabled under the Fair Housing Act by virtue of recovery from substance use disorder. Daniel Hahn, a regional Oxford House manager and resident success-story, said Oxford House operates a peer-run model and noted steps the house had taken to reduce neighborhood impacts, including limiting parking to driveways and immediate frontage and contracting professional lawn care.

The Planning Department’s staff report noted 18 police calls for service to 6010 South 80th Street since 2022; Lincoln Police Department Captain Cope (Southeast team) said there were 114 calls within a roughly 750-foot radius of the property and that the 18 calls attributed to the address included parking complaints, trespass/disturbance calls and other non-arrest incidents. Captain Cope said officers had mediated neighbor disputes and that no criminal arrests at the address resulted from those calls.

Commissioners discussed public comments submitted before the hearing and in-person testimony. Several commissioners said they were persuaded that Oxford House offers an evidence-based peer recovery model and that the residents had taken measures to address parking and maintenance concerns. The applicant cited a prior Lincoln approval in 2022 for an Oxford House at 1923 B Street as precedent for similar accommodations.

The commission’s motion approved designation of the property as a collaborative living facility with reasonable accommodation for up to eight unrelated persons; commissioners noted that the action is a recommendation and that the city council will take final action. The motion passed 6-0 (Campbell: yes; Cruz: yes; Ebert: yes; Edens: yes; Feit: yes; Joy: yes).

The Planning Department record will go forward for City Council consideration with the commission’s recommendation and the materials presented during the hearing, including the staff report, police-call summary and applicant commitments on parking and maintenance. The commission and police encouraged neighbors to report concerns so officers or city staff can mediate or enforce violations if they occur.