Hegg: Sober living home in Sun City not appropriate

This is to clarify some of the mis-quoted facts in the article (“Unlicensed home facilities face pushback,” Sun City Independent, June 7, 2023) about group homes.

What we neighbors currently know.

1 - this is a Gemini duplex home in a 55-plus community of strict CC&R's restricting rentals and businesses.

2 - the 2-bedroom home in question is currently set up with five single beds and has had the Arizona room divided into two smaller possible bedrooms and a corridor to the outside patio.

3 - workers at this home have told neighbors that they are working for a woman who is opening a rehab home at that location.

4 - as there is no license/permit on file with Arizona Department of Health Services for any type of group home, therefore it is reasoned to be a sober living home. Whether licensed or unlicensed we do not know at this point.

5 - at the time of the Sun City Home Owners Association meeting no one had moved into the residence.

6 - the owner who bought the home to flip and then took off the market has not paid any HOA fees for this community during 2023.

7 - the owner owns or is part of multiple real estate LLC companies in the Valley.

8 - the owner, against our HOA CC&Rs, appears to be planning to rent the property for a business to be conducted regardless of the CC&R's for this community, which prohibit businesses or renting a unit until it has been owned for two years. Arizona law is telling us we can do absolutely nothing about this and we must allow him to rent to a group home despite that he hasn't owned it for two years.

9 - Gemini homes have no fire walls between the homes or the attics. Does this meet requirements for a licensed group home?

10 - the water use for this unit with five people will go up substantially, which will cause an increase in monthly HOA fees for all members of the HOA to have to subsidize.

The state of Arizona as well as numerous cities in the area are seeing a large influx of these homes, many of which are unlicensed, which are causing a spike in crime, assaults, vandalism, drunkenness and drug sales. As these homes are shut down and moved out of surrounding cities, Sun City becomes a prime spot being unincorporated and not having code enforcement.

We as neighbors to this property do not want a drug/alcohol rehab home in Sun City, let alone next door to us. We moved to Sun City to live a quiet, peaceful life in a community of strict covenants conditions and restrictions. None of us moved into Sun City to have to confront this sort of situation and no one else is going to want to move here once this issue becomes known.

People of Sun City need to take notice as this could be your street next.