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Council Meeting Minutes for November 4, 2024 <br />Page 6 of 7 <br /> <br />Visitor Presentation from County Commissioner Fran Miron <br /> <br />Commissioner Fran Miron stated that he was in attendance for the Oakshore Park residents and <br />said their issue was beyond the scope of the City and City Council. He talked about <br />conversations he had with Council Member Petryk, who represented the citizens of Oakshore <br />Park and said he couldn’t comment on details due to privacy laws. He wanted the community to <br />know the issue had been resolved. He said the Council had safety as a number one priority and <br />the sense of the lack of that was of concern. He said Beacon was the provider with the license <br />and would likely house other individuals. He explained that it was the right of the property <br />owner under State and Federal law. The providers were responsible to be in compliance <br />regarding the home and care of residents. The County’s role was to issue the license if the <br />homes meet the safety standards, and they make recommendations to the Department of Human <br />Services on any issues. He provided the phone number to the Washington County Services <br />Director saying she would be happy to have discussions with any of the residents. He said he <br />appreciated that they reached out on this issue and wanted the residents to know their concerns <br />were taken seriously. He said the homes were licensed and will continue to operate. <br /> <br />Petryk said she appreciated the County’s responsiveness to this issue and their intervention. <br /> <br />Visitor Presentation from Oakshore Park Residents <br /> <br />Residents from the Oakshore Park Neighborhood requested to be on the agenda to provide <br />Council a report on recent events involving a group home in their neighborhood. <br /> <br />Ann Meyer, 12314 Everton Circle North, said she did not live in the Oakshore Park development <br />but was in close proximity of the home at 12185 Everton Avenue North owned by Beacon. She <br />talked about how the foster home failed to care for the child and she expressed concerns for the <br />home and community members. She asked Council to take any and all necessary actions to ensure <br />there are not similar situations. She listed the agencies they had been in contact with, and she <br />provided details of incidents involving the child that they were concerned about. She talked about <br />the lack of qualified staff at the home and how it impacted the life of the child and the lives of <br />community members. She questioned Beacon’s operation and asked how this property qualified <br />for a license and how they would be notified on what was happening there moving forward. <br /> <br />Weidt explained the City did not handle the human resources end of this. It was out of the realm <br />of what the City covered, and he talked about the people and agencies that were involved that <br />were not a part of the City. The investigation and control of the provider of the house would be <br />assessed at the County and State level. He acknowledge it was a bad situation. <br /> <br />City Administrator Bryan Bear added that the City had no regulatory authority over where group <br />homes were located, no zoning authority, and the City would not be notified when a group home <br />is established or when residents come and go. <br /> <br />Ann said she was not opposed to having it (group home) on the block but wanted to make sure <br />they were safe. Ann asked how they could find out about changes. <br /> <br />Bear explained the process can result in the review of the license for both the business and <br />property owner, and in this situation the process did result in a change. He invited her to contact