Politics & Government
Wheaton City Council Unanimously Votes To Nix Drug Center Plans
After months of protest from residents, the city council voted to deny the drug treatment center's application Tuesday.
WHEATON, IL — The Wheaton City Council has voted unanimously against Haymarket Center's proposal to build a residential treatment center in one of the city's commercial districts. The decision comes two weeks after the members of Wheaton's Zoning and Planning Committee voted to recommend denial on the grounds that the proposed use was not compatible with the city's zoning code and would require a text amendment.
The requested amendment to accommodate Haymarket's 16-bed treatment facility would have added "residential in-patient facilities" to Wheaton's C5 commercial district, a change that would would carry over to Wheaton's other commercial districts.
Ahead of Monday's City Council vote, hundreds of residents wrote to the city in protest and many spoke at a lengthy zoning and planning meeting in early January. Residents consistently acknowledged the need for a drug treatment facility in the area, but said they disagreed with the proposed location.
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Some expressed their opposition to changes to the zoning code text in a designated commercial zone. Other residents raised concerns about a drug treatment facility being placed near places children frequent, including KinderCare, an early childhood education and daycare facility near the proposed site at 140 E. Loop Dr.
Haymarket Center could still apply to open an outpatient center in Wheaton in the hopes of addressing opioid use in DuPage County, but plans to "take some time to consider all our options before determining next steps," CEO Dan Lustig said in a statement.
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In 2017, 95 people died of opioid overdoses in DuPage County. Of these, 23 deaths were attributed to heroin alone and an equal number of deaths were due to prescription opioid overdose, which increased by 35% from 2016.
In his statement, Lustig said the need for a site like Haymarket Center in DuPage County "has never been more urgent." He added, "We have not lost our hope or our commitment to serving the needs of DuPage County residents."
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