By Leslie Collins
Northeast News
June 29, 2011

The recent feud between Newhouse and the Scarritt Renaissance Neighborhood Association can be summed up into two words: communication breakdowns.

Newhouse, a shelter for abused women and their children, wanted to operate a home for unaccompanied girls ages 15 to 21 at 523 Gladstone Blvd.

However, in 2007, the Scarritt Renaissance Neighborhood Association received unanimous approval from the city council to downzone the neighborhood’s Historic District from the combination of multi-family and single family living to single family living only.

That meant Newhouse needed to obtain a special use permit and rezoning approval to have “group living.”

When Newhouse approached the neighborhood association in March with its plan, the neighborhood association failed to respond. As a result, Newhouse assumed there was no opposition and Fox Family Foundation, the soon-to-be owner of the property, submitted a request for a special permit and rezoning to the City Plan Commission.

However, the neighborhood association voted against the plan during their June 6 neighborhood association meeting.

“If they (neighborhood association) would have responded in March and said, ‘We oppose your application,’ then he (Kevin Fox of Fox Family Foundation) wouldn’t have applied and gotten into contracts with Yuri Ives and the seller,” said Newhouse President and Chief Executive Officer Leslie Caplan.

Since Fox was bound legally and morally to the seller to seek a group living permit, Newhouse and Fox continued with their plan, Caplan said.

Despite the negative feedback from the Scarritt Renaissance Neighborhood, the City Plan Commission voted unanimously to approve a special use permit and rezoning for Newhouse.

“When the city asks for a neighborhood organization’s input and then says they value it and then they go against their (neighborhood’s) wishes, it marginalizes every neighborhood in Northeast,” Scarritt Renaissance Neighborhood Association President Adam Schieber said. “Why even have zoning rules if there can be a variance in certain situations?”

During the May 9, 2007, City Planning and Zoning Committee meeting, Brian Pitts of the City Planning and Development staff told the committee that the staff recommended rezoning without special conditions.

However, the city council never updated the Budd Park Area Plan, which supports “high density residential” living. Therefore, City Planner Larry Stice recommended the City Plan Commission approve the rezoning and special use permit.

Due to the controversy, Caplan said Newhouse is no longer working on the project with the Fox Family Family Foundation and will not operate a girls home at 523 Gladstone Blvd. Due to their contractual obligations, the Fox Family will continue to seek approval for group living at that residence. Fox Family still needs official approval from both the city council and Board of Zoning Adjustment to receive the special use permit and rezoning.

Asked why Newhouse decided not to pursue the girls home at 523 Gladstone Blvd., Caplan said, “Because it was never meant to be contentious in the first place. If the (neighborhood association) board had done their duty it wouldn’t have even happened. We wouldn’t be here.

“With the contentiousness and the hatefulness of the residents, who would want to put girls in the midst of that? We were putting the girls in the neighborhood for the very purpose of them (residents) serving as role models for these girls.

“The very people we thought were going to be role models are saying some pretty nasty things.”

Asked what Newhouse plans to do next, Caplan said, “I’m not prepared to say at this point.”