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NEIGHBORS OPPOSE HOMELESS SHELTER FOR VETERANS

-- Some worry veterans might have mental health conditions,

chemical dependencies or criminal histories.

 

 

However, there are many who support this shelter.

We have two stories...the first is about those "against"...the second story is about those "for" the shelter.

First story here... http://www.starexponent.com/
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Story below:

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Veterans' shelter foes to appeal

Liz Mitchell
Staff Writer

Compassion House has never made it to the Board of Supervisors’ agenda but the county has heard about issues surrounding the shelter for the past two months.

Mark and Yolonda Deane of Deane Outreach Ministry decided to convert their $625,000 home in Brandy Station into a homeless shelter for veterans.

The house on Gravel Road now has five veterans living in it: the maximum allowed by county ordinances for a single family home.

Last month, 43 residents of three Brandy Station neighborhoods signed a petition opposing the house and presented their concerns before the board.

They now plan to appeal to the Board of Zoning Appeals regarding the county’s decision to treat the shelter as a single family home.

Neighbors argue the shelter violates county zoning ordinances and is inappropriate, being 10 miles from public transportation and services.

Some worry veterans might have mental health conditions, chemical dependencies or criminal histories.

At Tuesday night’s meeting about 30 people attended, this time, to extend their support to Compassion House and the Deanes’ ministry. They urged the board to support it and uphold county laws as is.

Mike Whetston, an Army veteran, referred to Compassion House as a veteran transition facility rather than a shelter.

He noted neighbor concerns are valid but their complaints are not because no laws have been broken. He also reminded the board that the Deanes check their residents’ backgrounds and conduct random drug testing.

The five veterans living in the house attended Tuesday’s meeting. Most are working or looking for work and plan on living in the house until they can raise enough money to move out and start their lives over.

In previous articles, they have said they are only there due to unfortunate circumstances or bad choices.

“But the defamatory claims by neighbors that residents have psychiatric problems are unfounded and border on slander,” Whetston said. “These veterans seek a better life than the one they’re living.”

Cindy Kokernak, of the American Legion, echoed Whetston.
“No one ever asked to be homeless,” she said. “These are very proud men. They only took help that was offered to them.”

Yolonda Deane said she wants the community to feel welcome at Compassion House. However, some neighbors have resorted to photographing their property and gawking at the veterans living there, she said.

If neighbors in opposition attended the meeting, none spoke during the hearing.

Chairman John Coates cut off citizens at 7:30 p.m. to conduct county business on the agenda.

Yolonda Deane hopes Compassion House can help end homelessness, if anything, by serving as a kickoff for affordable housing opportunities in Culpeper. She also hopes the community will support the veterans who live there and the mission of Compassion House.

“These are men who served their country,” she said. “They are not addicted to chemicals. They are just men who are disabled or on disability money. I feel like people are closing their hearts and their minds to the veterans.”

Liz Mitchell can be reached at 825-0771 ext. 110 or emitchell@starexponent.com

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Second story here...
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FL
S/2007/062007/06062007/290283

Story below:

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Vet-home backers defend residents

BY DONNIE JOHNSTON

Neighborhood fears about residents of a shelter for homeless veterans in rural Culpeper County are unfounded, proponents told supervisors last night.

"Safety, security and public order are not at stake here," said Mike Weston, a military veteran who now works at the Quantico Marine Corps base.

Weston went on to say that neighbors of Compassion House may have "valid concerns, but they are not valid complaints. No laws have been broken."

In May, neighbors complained to the Board of Supervisors about the five men who now reside at the home about four miles north of Brandy Station.

The neighbors suggested that their subdivision was at risk because of the nearby shelter, which was opened in April by Yolonda Deane.

A number of those residents have banded together and threatened legal action if the county does not do something. They contend that zoning laws do not permit such a facility to exist in a rural neighborhood without a special-use permit.

Zoning officials, however, say that five unrelated people may legally share a home without a use permit.

"These [neighbors] are closing their hearts and their minds to the veterans who live in that house," Deane told the board last night. "We have opened up affordable living for these people so they will no longer be homeless."

In fact, Deane suggested that it was her neighbors, not Compassion House residents, who are breaking the law.

"People are trespassing on our property and taking pictures," she said, adding that she had been forced to call the Sheriff's Office after someone drove a four-wheeler into the shelter's yard.

Weston also suggested that comments made by neighbors about the veterans, all of whom attended last night's meeting, bordered on slander.

"These men do not have psychiatric problems or chemical dependencies," he said. "They are just there seeking a better life than the one they've been living."

Weston also took exception to the remarks of several veterans who spoke against the Compassion House last month, accusing them of taking "a ready, aim, fire approach."

Cliff Lewin, a Vietnam veteran and a member of Rolling Thunder, said Culpeper should honor these homeless veterans.

"They have put their lives on the line so that Americans can lay down their heads in safety at night," he said.

Cindy Kokernak, a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, called the Compassion House "a clean, wonderful environment."

"These are some of the strongest, proudest and most mild-mannered men I have ever met in my life," she said. "No one asked them to be homeless."

Deane gave supervisors photographs of several unsightly scenes in her neighborhood and compared them to the neatness of Compassion House.

"This is how we are being picked on," she said.

Weston presented the board with a petition bearing the names of some 160 people who support the shelter.

About 30 people turned out last night in support of Compassion House, but only a few were allowed to speak during the public forum portion of the meeting.

The issue was not on the agenda and Chairman John Coates cut off comments after 30 minutes, the traditional length of the forum.

No one spoke in opposition to the shelter at last night's meeting.

 

Donnie Johnston:
Email: djohnston@freelancestar.com

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Larry Scott  --