The UK drug study just showed that in terms of drugs, Meth causes the least harm to others, significantly less than alcohol. This study seemed to include factors such as Meth clinics. The graph is really handy here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11660210

I think people are just upset that they don’t have as much money as Wards 1 and 2 and don’t have the leverage to make social services other wards’ problems.

I’d rather we tried to make the services better so that their effects such as litter and smoking are removed. Why not put one of the job centers at the shelter – something with both job training and job searches? How about a mental health/substance abuse clinic? How about a financial training center? A housing center?

Affluent people don’t like to consolidate services because the Projects failed. But no one remembers that the Projects actually only consolidated poor people, failing to consolidate or even bring a single service other than shelter. And even the shelter was non-existent in that public lights were never replaced, pipes were shut off, essentially no building maintenance was performed. They didn’t fail because all the services were consolidated, they failed because the services never made it to the Projects.

And to clarify again, the house at the end of the block sells medications, much like what is claimed to be going on in Res. 13.

“Have any residents noticed any problems surrounding the methadone clinic at DC General?”

I had a white male walk into my house (always keep your front door locked) while I was sitting in the living room.

When I sprang up and approached him and yelled what the $&%#$ he was doing in my living room, he said he thought that my house was the methadone clinic.

I got him out quickly, then phoned the police. MPD showed up within 90 seconds of my hanging up the phone, and found the guy within 5 minutes.

No charges were pressed and he was sent on his way.

There was no harm done, but the man who entered my home did seem drunk or high. Then again, it could have been mental illness.

“Have any residents noticed any problems surrounding the methadone clinic at DC General?”

I forgot, a few weeks back a woman passed out on my neighbors steps near Mass and 17th on a Saturday afternoon. Police were called as she was minimally responsive (only slurs, etc.) to questions about her well being. He said that she was high, got her walking again, and directed her away.

Well, Jim, if my facts are wrong, by all means point them out. I certainly don’t want to be incorrect and would be happy to change any errors. I’m fairly certain I accuratly portrayed the meeting last night, but if folks think I missed something or have points to add, I’d welcome amplifying comments.

The Hill Is Home usually presents articles with genuine information of value. Unfortunately every once in a while a less than creative fiction report such as this item from Mr. Krepp appears and lessens the reputation of THIH as a somewhat interesting and informative blog. Maybe Mr. Krepp should try checking out the real world and do a little background research before he writes about something which shows his ignorance.

For instance, Mr. Wells, who is also a member of the Health Committee which has oversight of the these type of clinics, asked the community to justify their concerns rather than seek to have the managers of the methadone clinic discuss their program controls. The community objected that the responsibility for these programs rested with the managers and they should justify their presence in the community. Oh thats right the managers of the clinic refused to attend the meeting according to Mr. Wells. Let me repeat, the program managers refused to attend according to Mr. Wells–they didn’t just happen to be absent. This was something Mr. Krepp failed to mention. But then again, that would not support Mr. Krepp’s unsupported position that they want to be “good neighbors.”

Mr. Krepp could also have mentioned that there was a discussion that the FBI investigated and made 11 arrests of individuals involved in an illegal perscription drug operation which operated from the women’s methadone clinic at DC General and involved Grubbs pharmacy at 4th & East Capitol. That was reported last night but wasn’t significant enough for Mr. Krepp to report.

It was also reported last evening that the GAO did a report on the crimes and criminal element operating around the various methadone clinics in DC including the women’s clinic at DC General and the UPO (CTC) Clinic being tranferred from N ST. NE to Reservation 13. Mr. Krepp failed to mention or note that fact.

But then again, some of us recognize Mr. Krepp as that frequent poster on the newhilleast list serv who when individuals post criticisms of our Ward 6 councilmember, he chastizes them for complaining and wants them to contact Wells directly or tweet him or walk aroud the Ward until we run into Wells rather than complaining or venting on the list serv. Sometimes people just like to vent.

Of the 70 or so individuals present last evening (not 40 as Mr. Krepp reports), the majority felt they were wasting their time. Mr. Wells, Mr. Carter from Human Services and Mr. Sousa from the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development spent most of their time responding to questions from the audience with “I don’t know” or “we don’t have that information” or “the person with that knowledge is on travel” or “I’ll have to check” or “does anyone in the audience know.” I’m talking about basic questions dealing with homeless shelters, homeless beds, homeless population or Reservation 13 development. Another item Mr. Krepp fails to mention.

After looking again at Mr. Krepp’s article and my notes and other postings on the newhilleast list serv, I wonder if Mr. Krepp actually attended the meeting. His report next week should be as equally informative or at least entertaining..

@Frank Zampatori

I counted 43 people in the room during the middle of the meeting. I was two rows behind you and over your left shoulder.

I’m not entirely certain where the bile comes from, but judging from your behavior at the meeting I’m comforted in the fact that it’s not directed at me alone.

And a WaPo article on the 2004 GAO study was linked to in my post.

Let’s take it down a notch, shall we? You’ve been working on this issue for years, I’m sure you have quite a lot to add to the conversation. But let’s keep it a conversation, and not a shouting match.

I am a relative newcomer to the Hill area and very new to Hill East specifically. I live within a couple of blocks of DC General and in general I enjoy the neighborhood and no, I have not seen anything specifically bad coming from the Reservation 13 site where social services including a methadone clinic are already located. That does not mean that I am not becoming a bit concerned that my love for this area and my new apartment will be diminished this winter. It also does not mean that I am not concerned about the expansion of those services, because it does seem to me that there is no real plan, and specifically no real plan for how the methadone clinic will accomplish being a “good neighbor.” In my opinion asking for that type of information is a way to discredit concerns that are legitimate regardless of the current presence of any problems. Trust me, I WANT to prove all the people who think that my moving farther east was a big risk for a single little white girl wrong, and I want to love it here, social services or not. But it is frustrating when the people who could answer my questions and potentially put some concerns at ease are unavailable, and the community has been promised things that were not delivered on before. It is also frustrating when other council members are able to invoke a community’s non-existent right to comment on services being placed in their neighborhood, and then we are criticized for voicing the very same concerns, and I think people are feeling a little defensive.

Yes, I also wish that Res. 13 would be developed the way it was originally planned, and it certainly does seem like some of these “temporary” social services are actually going to be there for a long time to come, potentially preventing the neighborhood development that would otherwise occur. I am most definitely not opposed to living near these types of services but the increasing concentration of homeless/low-income/drug services and nothing else nearby is preventing me from feeling like the area is really a part of my community, and that is admittedly a disappointment.

I am also frustrated with the neighborhood discussion. There is a level of moderation that no one is really hitting. I am on the newhilleast listserv, and while I would never begrudge someone the opportunity to vent their frustrations, the discussion is beginning to seem like a horribly long, drawn-out community meeting and is quickly degenerating due to a few people’s differing interpretations of the meeting and the issues. Can someone please tell me how the rest of us who have moderate concerns can focus on getting answers to our perfectly legitimate questions? The listserv and these blog comments are not telling me what I can do next to explore what is going on in my neighborhood, and are honestly going to turn me off from being as tuned in as I currently am.

Opps, I miss quoted dear ol dad. He said “and let you out!”

I’m really glad to see posts like these on THIH – while I like the socially-focused posts, it’s nice to learn about more serious things like this going on in the community as well.

Maybe I’m a naive young professional with silly notions of taking care of my fellow man, but what, dare I ask, do these neighbors suggest we do to contain the problems mentioned (besides completely abandoning these social service projects)? Force the responsibility on some other poorer neighborhood with even less adequate means of taking care of our troubled citizens? And because these people are homeless and/or addicts, we should just…ignore them?
Say we fight the improvement of these facilities at Res. 13. Then, those who have received these services and are better off for them will end up suffering and wandering our streets again anyway. I’m from PG County, MD and let me tell you, even the most affluent neighborhoods occasionally have a crackhead or two wander in and pee on their precious rose bushes. So sorry if implementing good social service programs hinders the development of crepe shops and brunch places.
I don’t blame the program managers for not being in attendance at the meeting, because honestly they’re mostly all social workers, which means they’re underpaid and have better things to do at the end of their very stressful, very emotionally draining days than listen to a bunch of more-fortunate “neighbors” object to the existence of their work and refuse to bring up more productive solutions to the problem.

Dear Sir, in my opinion, just becase a social service is offered doesn’t mean it is a good social service. Our focus as a city ought to be excellent outcomes for services rendered. Additionally, without active community dialogue with the social servant and the community, excellent outcomes are always going to be crowded out by last nights litter (fried onion bags, plastics bottles, needles).
As this city continues to develop and whether or not the grounds of D.C. General turn into a perminent fixture for social services, my hope is that those in charge would involve the community as to the outcomes of services rendered and future plans for Res. 13 before the decisions are made. Those making the decision on what and where the services are adminstered, whether legal or not, have a responsibility to the taxpayers and the communities to dialogue with us because we will be their biggest critic or proponent. Would it be too much to ask for a quarterly or semi-annual meeting on services rendered and plans for future services to be rendered?

Umm, anon, it was Tommy Wells who blocked the expansion of DC General as a shelter (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/13/AR2010101302484.html).

If anyone has information to the contrary, by all means let me know, but it looks pretty obvious to me that it is not Tommy Wells pushing for the expansion of social services at DC Gen.

I live right near the previous site of the methadone clinic on N between 1st and North Capitol. They had a security guard outside the door much of the time. However, walking to the metro early mornings or on Saturdays large groups of patients would be waiting outside for it to open or waiting for transportation, and twice I got threatened by the same man (I’m paraphrasing, but it was something like, “Watch it or I’ll stab you”) Most of the people, though were polite or at least not doing anything illegal. There is a lot of petty and violent crime in the area (especially public urination), but it’s hard to say just from observing if any of it was committed by the patients (as opposed to residents or patrons of So Others Might Eat). Don’t worry, Hill East, the other Wards have their share of social services, too.