Resident tells La Mesa council a Bellflower Drive home is being advertised as a detox facility; asks why city has not acted

Barbara "Barbie" Wheeler addressed the La Mesa City Council during public comment on Jan. 13 on behalf of Bellflower Drive residents, alleging that a local property has been operating unlawfully and is now being advertised as a detox facility.

"Mister Richard Evans, the so called owner of the drug house, has put it up for sale," Wheeler told the council, saying the online listing advertises the property as a detox center. She said residents forwarded the listing to CADHS and asked why the city has not pursued enforcement beyond the cease‑and‑desist the commenter said was previously issued.

Wheeler said residents feel they have been left to do the investigative work and argued there are enforcement paths beyond fair‑housing limits: "There are also many other tangible violations we can go after, including public nuisance, unlicensed operation, and false advertising," she said, and asked, "Why is this not being pursued?"

Wheeler said the situation has affected neighborhood safety, describing an incident in which someone she called a "druggie" came to her front door asking for money and asked the council how residents can live safely on Bellflower Drive. She closed by saying residents do not feel safe and asked for more city action.

The transcript does not record a city response at the meeting; no city staff person or council member is recorded as answering Wheeler's specific allegations on the record during the public comment period. The allegation that the property was forwarded to "CADHS" appears in Wheeler's remarks and was not independently verified in the meeting record.