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Neighbors urge city to enforce licensing and oversight after RISE Services opens group home at 888 N. Indian Hills Drive
Summary
Neighbors, led by Sarah Conder, told the Richfield City Council that a RISE Services group home was established on Indian Hills Drive without local notice or a business license and urged the council to require compliance with zoning, building and licensing rules and a designated local contact for complaints.
Neighbors living near 888 North Indian Hills Drive told the Richfield City Council they learned only after remodeling and move-ins that a group home run by RISE Services had opened in their block.
"This facility was introduced without notice, without city approval, and without any opportunity for the neighbors to ask questions," said Sarah Conder, who said she lives near the property and submitted a written statement. She asked the council to require the provider to comply with local licensing, zoning and building codes and to name a local contact for neighborhood concerns.
Conder said the property's ownership appears to involve multiple LLCs with out‑of‑state ties, complicating accountability. She listed neighborhood complaints including speeding and smoking, and said neighbors did not know who to call. "Complaints must go through the state, which feels distant and ineffective," she said.
City staff and council members responded that the provider had not obtained a local business license and that the municipal process requires either a business license or a conditional‑use approval for such uses. Staff said the city had engaged the provider and its attorney and could require the provider to come into compliance or close the operation if it fails to obtain the required local approvals.
Council members noted federal housing protections that limit a municipality's ability to deny group‑home uses outright. Several council members urged staff to continue attorney contact with the provider, set a compliance deadline, and report back to the council. One staff member said the city has authority to shut a location down for failure to meet local licensing requirements, though the timeline and enforcement steps were not specified at the meeting.
The council did not adopt a new ordinance or take immediate enforcement action at the meeting; members directed staff to continue attempts to secure the business license and to coordinate with legal counsel on next steps.
The issue is expected to return to staff and legal review; neighbors asked for a clearly identified point of contact so future complaints can be resolved without resorting to state channels.
