![]() ![]() 'We believe Quincy will get there': Meet the developers ushering the city into a new eraĢ0 pricey homes: These houses that recently sold on the South Shore that have it all Ward 4 City Councilor Brian Palmucci pointed out that a 15-story high rise was built recently in Quincy Center, a 16-story building in North Quincy has been approved by the zoning board, and FoxRock Properties has a 20-story proposal for downtown in front of the planning board. QUINCY – City councilors are asking fire department officials to come before them and explain how the addition of several high-rise buildings to the city changes staffing and other internal operations of the department. “There should be no more fly-by-night sober houses,” he said.Watch Video: Video: Big changes are coming to downtown Quincy Palmucci is also proposing the council petition the state Legislature to adopt the bill statewide. ![]() Palmucci said this bill will better protect vulnerable people in recovery as well as give the city a means for tracking and overseeing sober houses in Quincy. The bill also provides protections for residents of sober homes from predatory behavior by owners or employees and requirements for maintaining the facility. To achieve certification, sober houses must have set policies for residents on medication-assisted treatment, fair practices for alcohol and drug testing, discharge proceedings, emergency procedures, policies for money management of residents, complaint processes and criminal background checks for employees and owners, to name a few. Palmucci’s bill would require sober houses to receive certification from nationally recognized organizations that are approved by the city. “How can it be said to be discriminatory against when the legislation is there to protect them - that’s the goal,” Palmucci said. Rather than focus on regulating the impact of the sober house on the surrounding community, something Palmucci pointed out has been a pitfall of much of the legislation aimed at regulating sober houses, he said his bill will work to protect the people inside the sober house. Palmucci was introducing legislation that he said could bring necessary oversight to an industry plagued by scandal and corruption. In Massachusetts, sober homes can voluntarily apply for certification with the Massachusetts Alliance for Sober Housing, but there is no requirement to do so, nor is there a penalty for failing to do so. State and local government efforts to regulate sober houses have often failed because substance abuse disorder is federally recognized as a disability under the Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act and governments are prohibited from enacting any zoning laws that discriminate against a person with substance use disorder because it is a federally protected class. They fall into a gray area somewhere between a treatment facility and a rooming house. Without oversight and regulation, sober homes have become an industry that Ward 4 City Councilor Brian Palmucci has described as “the wild, wild West.”Īt their best, sober homes provide drug-free environments where people new to recovery can find social and emotional support while avoiding the triggers that could pull them back into the throes of substance abuse.Īt their worst, they can be dingy, mismanaged houses where vulnerable people often relapse and are preyed upon for the insurance dollars they bring in to sober home operators.ĭespite the potential for harm and corruption, sober homes have largely existed unregulated. ![]() It’s something one Quincy city councilor is determined to change. QUINCY - Sober homes serve as a vital resource for the newly sober, promoting independent living in recovery, but as opioid addiction has exploded in recent years, so has the potential for abuse of a system that serves a vulnerable population. ![]()
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