The Holbrook City Council held a meeting as the Board of Adjustment prior to the regular council meeting on Thursday, May 11. During the meeting, the board held a public hearing on the appeal of a Planning and Zoning Commission denial of a conditional use permit requested by ChangePoint for the Howard Johnson hotel located at 2608 East Navajo Blvd., to turn into residential care services.
“The property is currently zoned C2, which is general commercial, which a residential care facility or homeless shelter is not allowed for principal use. A residential health care services is listed under conditional use requirements,” explained Planning and Zoning Chairman Michael Sample. He stated other reasons they opposed the request was due to local business owners in the immediate vicinity being against it as well as a statement. He also noted that a statement from the county attorney’s office saying it would be used for people in drug court as housing was a factor.
Chief Executive Officer of ChangePoint Jeff Oakes also addressed the board, during which he explained that despite previous statements, the building would not be a residential facility. “Just to make it clear, it’s not a residential facility. What we’re proposing is actually a transitional housing project that’s available for individuals that need housing.” Those mentioned would include homeless individuals and families, and those with behavioral health concerns.
Oakes stated the objective for the space will be to reduce demand on public safety officers and provide housing and services for individuals and families to become self-reliant as well as productive citizens in the community.
ChangePoint would convert the 44-room hotel into 35 apartments, combining some of the rooms to become larger two-bedroom residences for families. Oakes explained there would be an approval process to reside there and rules to follow. “There is an agreement with individuals that live there. For example, no pets, no weapons, no drugs, no alcohol on the property. We do have the ability to evict in the event that they’re not complying with the rules of the facility.”
Oakes added that it would potentially help law enforcement in regard to transport, which ChangePoint would provide. ChangePoint would also try to help provide assistance in getting residents Social Security, nutrition assistance as well as general educational development test (GED) classes. “We do anticipate that it would provide a number of additional jobs here in Holbrook,” stated Oakes, “We have a budget of $24 million a year. And about a million and a half are for staffing here in Holbrook.”
Oakes included statistics from the Arizona Department of Economic Security, stating that since 2020 there has been a nearly 25% increase in homelessness in the state, with the largest demographic being seniors 55 and older.
Snowflake Mayor and previous chairman for the ChangePoint board, Byron Lewis spoke in support of the conditional use permit.
Several citizens spoke out against the permit, including Robin Gonzales, who had many questions on the prospective residents. “Are these only going to be for residents of Holbrook? Or will these people be brought in from all of Navajo County? And they said they can be evicted. But what does that mean to put back on the street?”
Lynn Hadley also spoke in opposition, stating that there are better ways to improve Holbrook.
Former Holbrook Justice of the Peace Evelyn Marez addressed the board as well. “Fortunately, we don’t have much homeless or mental health citizens in our area. And we already assist nearby communities with this issue.”
Operations Manager of Holbrook Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Yvette Johnson stated that her biggest concern is how the homeless facility would drain from their already few resources. “We’re having a hard time keeping up with the calls that we have. We would need more employees and equipment. We do not even have that in our budget. And the homeless people that we do transport, there’s no payment for that.”
Johnson also stated that last year most of the calls they received were from the Bread of Life Mission, another homeless shelter in Holbrook. She added that they have received many calls from the ChangePoint apartments in town for nonemergency injuries, such as cracked hands, dry eyes and a supposed bloody nose. “This takes from the resources of our town. While we’re transporting these non-emergency calls, then the calls go out that truly need us, we’re not here to be able to provide for them.”
Johnson explained that EMS has only two staffed ambulances, and if they receive a third emergency they have to call other facilities and departments for assistance. “Is there going to be some kind of contract in place that we do get called there that they’re going to pay for the services of these people?”
Mayor Kathleen Smith read emails from Connie McPherson, Amanda Ramos and Teri Tafoya, who could not attend the meeting but also voiced their disapproval on the action item.
David Newlin voiced his support the ChangePoint facility appeal, explaining he saw no impact on the city except reducing the number of people on the streets and make it easier to treat their needs. “As far as those released from the drug courts, my goodness gracious, they’re required to take drug tests regularly. Some on a daily basis.”
Board member Arcenia Pacheco asked Oakes what the residents would do during the day if they are not required to work or give back to the community, to which Oakes said they would try to connect them with services, but could not force them to partake in them.
“All the people that are going to be at your place will not be Holbrook residents, they’ll be coming from somewhere else to live here,” stated board member Robert Black, “If they don’t obey the rules, they’re out of there. So we’re going to have more homeless back out on our streets that weren’t here to start with.”
As for previously mentioned concerns from EMS, Oakes explained they would find a way to pay for those services. “Our goal with this project would be first to get them enrolled into healthcare services, so that any transport any services that is needed, there would be a payer source for that.”
Mayor Smith added there might have been a misunderstanding in regard to the actual permit, which doesn’t fit under residential care facility and is more residential housing. “My concern is, it doesn’t get under conditional use permit, it actually should have been a permit for a zoning change, similar to what we had last week,” she said, referencing the discussion at the last council meeting where the council approved a zone change for America’s Best Value Inn with stipulations for improvement.
The board voted and unanimously approved the denial of the conditional use permit by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Vice Mayor Francie Payne was absent from the meeting.
Mayor Smith explained that ChangePoint would still be able to go back in front of Planning and Zoning and ask for a zoning request instead.
