By Joyce Coronel
“When you buy into a neighborhood and you live this long, you want neighbors. I didn’t build my house to have a business become my neighbor,” says Gwen Mastin as she contemplates the forthcoming assisted living group home to be developed in her South Tempe neighborhood, Corona del Sol Estates.
The quiet, upscale homes situated west of McClintock Drive and south of Warner Road were constructed decades ago when fields of farmland dominated the area.
Mastin and her husband raised their children in the house they built and never imagined a business would spring up next door to them. “This is all about making money,” Mastin says. “What happens if his license—it can be revoked if he doesn’t pay it on time—what happens if this financially doesn’t turn for him?”
Jim Robinson, owner of Avana Assisted Living, the Tempe-based business which purchased the home at 1426 E. Calle de Arcos, says the property had fallen into pre-foreclosure when he bought it last summer. The company owns a second property at 44 E. Knight Lane, near Rural and Carver roads, which has already been transformed into an assisted living group home. There are no residents there—yet.
Robinson said he didn’t realize how big an industry residential assisted living was until his own father, suffering from Alzheimer’s, became a resident at one in Illinois.
“As I’ve done my research, it’s unbelievable how many residential assisted living homes there are around the Phoenix area,” Robinson says.
“In certain parts of the Valley, you can throw a stone and hit about 50 of these homes. And you would never know it from the outside because they look like any other residential home.”
That’s cold comfort to people like Jill Etienne, who lives near the property on Calle de Arcos.
“We just feel like this type of development would change the dynamic in the neighborhood and the reason why everyone lives here,” Etienne says. She and her husband moved into Corona del Sol Estates last summer, enticed by the previous owners of their home who told them it was a very family-oriented neighborhood with block parties and other social gatherings. There is talk among concerned residents about pooling resources to hire an attorney to fight Avana Assisted Living’s development of the house on Calle de Arcos, Etienne said.
Neighbors concerned
Mark Kaiser, president of the Corona del Sol Estates Neighborhood Association, has met with Robinson.
“The concerns of the neighborhood revolve around excessive traffic and a change from the old family-style neighborhood to having businesses interspersed among the residents,” Kaiser said.
“The concern is that if you have a 10-patient assisted-group-living home, you’re obviously going to have care attendees there which will bring some number of cars on a daily basis and then you’ll have visitors. So there’s concern that there will be more than normal traffic on the street.”
Robinson counters that he’s already got a plan to allay those fears.
“We’ll create a ton of parking space. We already have a nice big driveway but we’ll also be creating a roundabout driveway. There are several other homes in the neighborhood that have those.”
According to Kris Baxter-Ging, a public information officer for the city of Tempe, there are 74 current or pending group homes in Tempe.
“Once a group home submits, we add them to this list so we do not have another home apply for the same area. These homes are for adult care, persons with disabilities or child shelters,” Baxter said.
The Tempe Zoning and Development Code also has a requirement for a 1,200-foot separation distance from the lot line of one group home to the lot line of an existing group home. That’s a little less than a quarter of a mile, so depending on the size of the neighborhood, there is a possibility that more than one group home could be established in a Tempe neighborhood.
Chandler’s response
Neighboring Chandler has a similar restriction of a 1,200-foot distance between group homes. According to Stephanie Romero, public information officer for the city of Chandler, there are 222 registered or pending group homes in Chandler.
David de La Torre, planning manager with Chandler’s Development Services Department, said the city’s zoning code allows group homes to have up to five residents. However, a group home for residents who have a disability can request a “reasonable accommodation waiver” to have more than five residents up to a maximum of 10.
“Generally speaking, people living in an assisted living home are considered to have a disability. The definition of a disability in Chandler’s code mirrors the definition used in federal law that protects discrimination of people with disability, which is very general and inclusive of various types of disabilities,” De la Torre said.
“Currently in Chandler, there are 27 registered or pending group homes with more than five residents. Eight of those 27 are approved to have 10 residents.”
Although work had not yet begun on preparing the Calle de Arcos property for its planned usage,
Robinson said he plans to begin demolition work any day now and hopes renovation will be complete by May 1.
The city of Tempe approved Robinson’s building permit Jan. 19 he now must await state licensing, something he will apply for after a sprinkler system and alarms have been installed. He’s hoping residents of Corona del Sol Estates will feel differently about the presence of a group home in their neighborhood once they can see that their current concerns have not materialized.
“I hope that over time, not only will they just tolerate the fact that I’m there, but that they can actually embrace it,” Robinson said.
Property values
Residents of Corona del Sol Estates don’t seem placated by these assertions, however, as evidenced by the appearance of 50 or 60 neighborhood residents at an informational meeting on Feb. 1 that grew heated and led to raised voices and shouting.
“It got down to personal attacks on me,” Robinson said. “They called me a snake and a liar.”
“The quietness is going to be gone with 10 people living there,” Mastin told Wrangler News. “This isn’t about being compassionate…it’s all about making money.”
According to Avana Assisted Living’s website, monthly pricing for the facility starts at $5,000 for a private suite with a bathroom. The most expensive accommodations run $7,500 for a two-bedroom suite with half-bath and patio.
Kaiser, the neighborhood association president, toured Avana’s group home on Knight Lane. The home there is larger than the one on Calle de Arcos, he said.
“Inside it was neat and clean and new—it was open and airy,” Kaiser noted.
Still, Kaiser said, the concern is that home values in the area may slip with the establishment of group homes on quiet streets like Calle de Arcos.
Nick Bastian, a South Tempe Realtor who lives not far from the property, offered his take on the situation.
“I don’t know that this particular use is going to be anybody in the neighborhood’s favorite use, but I don’t think it’s going to have a real negative impact,” Bastian said.
“These types of properties—depending on how they’re run and managed—a lot of times you won’t even know they are there.”
And, he noted, alluding to another thorny community issue, 10 elderly assisted-living residents next door might just be a quieter alternative to the possibility of a 10-bedroom Airbnb. Cities across the nation have grappled with that hornet’s nest for the last few years.
In fact, another South Tempe home last year was converted to a vacation rental with paved-over lawns and reportedly a 10-bedroom occupancy, which the state legislature has ruled cities cannot regulate.
Unlike an Airbnb “I have to be licensed by the state,” Robinson said. “My license will be on the wall and there will be regular inspections.”
As the Calle de Arcos project continues, Robinson is slated to move forward with renovation in hopes of having residents soon. As to the property on Knight Lane, he already has bookings and deposits in place.
“There’s a large demand for this,” Robinson said. “Tempe is underserved.”
Yeah because those rowdy senior can really be disruptive and you should segregate all the old people from family neighborhoods. What’s the difference if they’re living in their own home or in a group home? wouldn’t you rather have that for your parents instead of an institutional setting? Some people are so ignorant!
Except as article points out, you can get waiver for not only more then 5, but up to 10 and they only need be disabled. Meaning you can have a house full of “recovering” addicts as that is a federally defined disability. I have no issue with that that being defined as disability but i do have a problem with for profit business being put in residential area. Particularly when you put requirements in place but then always give a work around, or as they call it a waiver, to not have to comply with the requirements. If its zoned residential then thats it. It shouldn’t mean you can open a business. And it certainly shouldn’t mean you can say its for 5 seniors, get approved, then next thing you know theres 10 twenty year old recovering addicts living there.
It doesn’t work like that. You can look into how the zoning laws allow for mixed use which is part of what drives the tax base. Nimbyism makes you look like a very small person.
We got suckered into one of these in our neighborhood -in an old school & were “promised” by the owner that he would only have “highly functioning mentally handicapped people” there & no-one violent & no registered Sex Offenders.
Well… within weeks of opening he had a registered sex offender there & has had multiple fights between residents & most recently an employee was attacked by a resident when he didn’t want to take his meds. The person attacked was female. Oh, and it’s really fun living next door to 40 strangers that room the neighborhood all hours as they’re human beings too & “can come & go as they please.” This place has also served as a backup to homeless shelters. Makes one feel all “safe & cozy.” We got suckered & lied to & the owner when remodeling constantly talked about how much he was gonna make – $1000/person. Fight it. And if anyone has had any luck fighting it, let me know.
Seem like the same type of idiots that move next to an airport or a racetrack. Then complain about the noise… hate them…
Nick is exactly right. The fear of this in some circles is much worse than what will likely actually transpire.
It’s a tough issue. There is a need for well run senior living places. Cities need to restrict it to seniors only. Prescott is full of group homes, many for drug addicts. Not good in family neighborhoods.
I cannot believe how disgustingly selfish these homeowner are. Get a grip NIMBYs. ITS A SENIOR HOME. You’re lucky your kids haven’t put your ass in one yet.
I have worked in group homes off and on for years serving both adults and children( mental illness)..one thing said at the end of the article has no bearing on the issue..saying that Tempe is underserved does nothing to help his case…people come from all over(state) to any neighborhood with an affordable open bed…i am thinking now and can not recall any residents of the group homes I worked in being from that same city..much less same neighborhood..it’s generally not something they want to share with family or childhood chums…
The real question is what is the age and circumstances of the individuals who are going to be living in the “group home”. Group home is a very broad term, and can be a residence for anything from senior citizens down to teens who have been adjudged “in need of services” by the courts. If the zoning permit for the home restricts residents to 55 years of age and older, there probably will not be a problem, but if the owners of a group home are free to change the type of clients they serve after the group home is established without restriction and input from the community there is a problem. Hopefully legislation and zoning restrictions can be but in place that both protect the communities and allow the support those who need the assistance of group homes.
U have to be pure trash to literally have a problem with a place most of y’all b—— will end up in one day. I hope y’all are treated the exact same way when y’all get old.
Wow. Do these people have parents? Grandparents? There is a very good chance you yourself will end up in one of these places. The stupid burns bright with these people. Do they realize this place is is licensed and has professionals coming into visit their clients(that doesn’t mean an endless string of people either) so it has to be clean and kept up. More than likely this place will end up being the nicest looking place on the street. If these people would actually look up AZ laws they would realize the patient/caregiver ratio in AZ is not that low so don’t worry there’s not going to be ten cars parked ruining your upscale neighborhood. BTW, where would you like these places located? In the middle of nowhere with difficult access to medical care? If your parent was here do you want the ambulance 30 minutes away when your dad is having a stroke?
My mother lived in a home like this in California. I was so grateful for her time there as it was a much better transition for her to go from living on her own to before having to be moved into a full nursing care facility (she has MS). Every time I visited, the street was very very quiet. What chaos is the neighborhood afraid of? The biggest concern is making sure local F.D. is aware of the home and how many occupants are there so in case of an emergency they can assist fore effectively in evacuating the residents. These places don’t have a feel of a “BUSINESSS” in the neighborhood. It just feels like a larger home with more occupants that go to bed by 8 p.m. and don’t drive and park in the street and have people caring for them 24 hours a day so the next door neighbors don’t have to worry about their elderly neighbor that they haven’t seen in a few days. You would have more traffic from a 5 person family with teen drivers. and by the way, one someone buys a house you have no control over how many people live in it, at least with these homes there is a limit because of regulations on caring for them
I live in a different S. Tempe neighborhood. The group home across the street from me for disabled adults (that no one told me existed when I bought) might seem like no big deal, but it is. I live on a very quiet street with very little traffic. Very few people park on the street. The group home has 3-5 cars on the street on any given day. That forces them to park in from of other homes. It looks like a party every day. The only vehicle in their driveway is the transport van that, every time it leaves 4-5 times a day, it beep beep beep beep beep beep beeps out of the driveway. It like living by a construction site. When a resident has a medical issue an ambulance shows up, every couple months or so. There’s a shift change around 10:30 – 11:00 because thats when cars come and go, music can be heard from cars, and people honk to pick up employees. I consider it very disruptive and the opposite of a residential neighborhood, but this appears to be a very protected issue, and little is done.
My god, these people are awful. This story is not recent, but the horrifying lack of humanity moves me to comment. How soulless do you have to be, to prefer that human beings be excluded from society so neighbors don’t have to tolerate minor inconveniences? (many of which are easily resolvable) Yes, the disabled life is such a riot; parties day and night! Perhaps a better idea would be a mandatory home buyers character registry, so that evil can be spaced out at least 1200 ft and not clustered too much in one neighborhood?